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KENNEWICK -- If there's one lesson Washington volleyball fans have learned by now, it should be: Never count Mead out.
Doesn't matter that the Panthers dropped the first two sets to Curtis in Friday night's 4A state championship match at Toyota Center.
Doesn't matter that they trailed 20-12 in the third set, with barely a pulse left in them.
This program has survived similar predicaments in the past at this tournament -- think two years ago in the semifinals against Rogers (Puyallup), for instance.
"I told them this is what we do. We'll win it in five," said Panthers coach Judy Kight.
And that's exactly what they did. The Panthers roared back to win their seventh title in school history, beating Curtis 23-25, 25-27, 26-24, 25-23, 15-12 and leaving their coach of 20 years, in her words, "stunned."
"They just gutted it out," Kight said, wiping sweat off her brow. "They're champions, through and through."
Leading the charge was USC-bound senior middle Alexis Olgard, who had 33 kills and 10 blocks, but Kight went down the line in her praise of all her players -- as well as her opponents.
"That was an exceptional performance by Curtis," Kight said. "They dug everything up, passed everything. They played incredible."
Olgard added, "They wanted it just as bad as us. We just pushed a little harder. We were down, but we didn't let it get to us. We came back strong, just kept fighting, and now we're state champs."
Those words will hardly ease the sting for the Vikings and coach Jeff Grosshans.
"We had the opportunity to be No. 1," said Grosshans, whose team was in its first state final. "We won as a team, and we lost as a team. We can be pround of what we did."
The Panthers had rolled through the postseason without hardly breaking a sweat, sweeping their first seven opponents -- including Graham-Kapowsin in the semifinals, 25-15, 25-14, 25-20.
But Curtis -- which swept SPSL rival Auburn Riverside in the semifinals -- came up big in the late stages of both of the first two sets. Senior Emily Cotter had a pair of kills late in the first to allow the Vikings to break a 21-21 tie, and they staved off a set point in the second before scoring the final three points.
"I told the kids they had nothing to lose, so just go out and have fun," Grosshans said. "This is what we had dreamed about, getting five games with Mead, so just go out and play."
The Panthers, meanwhile, had the pressure of being the overwhelming favorites, having been ranked No. 1 all year and nationally ranked since the season's midway point -- they came in No. 71 according to prepvolleyball.com.
Senior Chenise Patookas had back-to-back kills in the fifth set to start a four-point run for Mead that broke an 8-8 tie. Mady Dahlstrom's kill got the Panthers to match point, and Danika Christen served an ace to win it.
"That (pressure) is not a bad thing," Kight said. "You just have to work hard enough in practice and get your minds ready to go out and battle. The kids did that."
Auburn Riverside bounced back to defeat Graham-Kapowsin in the match to decide third and sixth places, 25-17, 25-22, 25-18. G-K was making its first-ever state appearance.
Last year's champion, Lewis & Clark, placed fourth this year by beating Olympia 21-25, 25-21, 25-20, 25-20, while Issaquah beat Jackson 25-17, 25-22, 27-25 in the consolation final for fifth and eighth places.
4A state tournament
Toyota Center
Semifinals
Curtis d. Auburn Riverside 25-16, 28-26, 25-20
Mead d. Graham-Kapowsin 25-15, 25-14, 25-20
Trophy round
Fifth/eighth -- Issaquah d. Jackson 25-17, 25-22, 27-25
Fourth/seventh -- Lewis & Clark d. Olympia 22-25, 25-21, 25-20, 25-21
Third/sixth -- Auburn Riverside d. Graham-Kapowsin 25-17, 25-22, 25-18
Championship -- Mead d. Curtis 23-25, 25-27, 26-24, 25-23, 15-12
Curtis 3, Auburn Riverside 0
AR--Brooke Bray 21 kills, 16 digs, 3 blocks; Brooklynn Bradbury 37 assists, 11 digs; Maureen Sachs 9 kills, 12 digs. Curtis--Emily Cotter 20 kills, 26 digs; Samantha Hutchinson 13 kills, 25 digs; Molly McClain 23 digs.
Mead 3, Graham-Kapowsin 0
Graham-Kapowsin--Kayla Reno 6 kills, 17 digs, 3 blocks; Kaitlyn Milloy 9 kills, 18 digs. Mead--Alexis Olgard 14 kills, 21 digs, 4 blocks; Emma Barrington 21 assists, 12 digs; Kuulei Zalopany 8 kills, 19 digs; Kaelyn Kight 13 kills, 8 digs.
Issaquah 3, Jackson 0
Issaquah--Stephanie Stoll 15 kills, 4 blocks; Alyssa Schultz 10 kills, 4 blocks; Sarah Hanna 7 kills, 6 digs, 3 aces; Riley Sorenson 42 assists. Jackson--Leigh-Ann Haataja 12 kills, 11 digs; Haley McDonald 27 assists.
Lewis & Clark 3, Olympia 1
Lewis & Clark--Janelle Vogt 19 kills, 13 digs, 3 blocks; Claire Hoffman 10 kills, 3 blocks; Shelby Grant 14 digs; Malea Webb 42 assists. Olympia--Jen Liedes 9 kills; Lisa Chulich 14 kills, 16 blocks; Sarah Stoker 8 kills, 7 blocks, 6 digs; Megan Triggs 36 digs.
Auburn Riverside 3, Graham-Kapowsin 0
Auburn Riverside--Brooke Bray 17 kills, 10 digs, 5 blocks; Brooklynn Bradbury 34 assists, 4 aces, 9 digs; Maureen Sachs 8 kills, 15 digs; Alison Wuerch 9 kills, 2 blocks. Graham-Kapowsin--No report.
Mead 3, Curtis 2
Curtis--Emily Cotter 26 kills, 20 digs; Samantha Hutchinson 15 kills, 26 digs; Kajse Knapp 20 kills. Mead--Alexis Olgard 33 kills, 13 digs, 10 blocks; Emma Barrington 38 assists; Danika Christen 24 assists; Kaely Kight 14 kills, 21 digs, 7 blocks.
