RICHLAND -- Walla Walla earned its first district championship since 2002, beating Wenatchee 10-25, 25-21, 25-21, 25-21 in the CBBN 4A title match Saturday at Art Dawald Gymnasium in Richland.
The Blue Devils swept Richland in the opener to reach the championship but got off to a bad start against the Panthers. They lost the first set decisively before coming back to sweep the next three to earn the crown.
"We had a great week of practice and came in feeling prepared," said Wa-Hi coach Audra Cummings. "My girls did a really good job siding out and not giving teams more than two points. We were able to keep our momentum."
Leading Walla Walla on the day were Chantelle Zamora with 18 kills, Frannie Eacker-Rude with 35 assists and Lexie Mahan with 48 digs. But Coach Cummings said that all 12 players were key in bring home the championship.
"It was honestly a team effort. I could tell you something spectacular about everybody today," Cummings said. "We played tough all day long. It's fun as a coach to have your team peak at this point."
* Richland bounced back from an opening round loss to Wa-Hi to beat Chiwana and Wenatchee to earn the No. 2 seed into the regional playoffs.
"I was very proud of my players," said Bombers coach Bob Raidl. "Walla Walla beat us soundly, but the girls did not pout. They came back and played a good Chiawana team that was pretty big. It was a stressful situation, and they responded well."
Richland topped the Riverhawks in four sets in the consolation bracket despite playing without star hitter Alisha Bettinson, who sprained an ankle against the Blue Devils.
Sadie Sparks had 30 kills and 32 digs in two matches to lead the Riverhawks, who also lost to Wenatchee in the semifinals.
"It was a frustrating end to a pretty darn good season," Chiawana coach Jim Steach said.
Richland--Charlene Manning 26 kills, 28 digs, 9 blks, 6 aces; Lauren Joseph 17 kills, 3 aces, 36 digs, 71 assts; Elizabeth Quick 15 kills, 12 blks; Deserea Estavillo 67 digs, 6 aces; Grace Smith 7 blocks, 6 kills.
Walla Walla--Frannie Eacker-Rude 35 assists; Brogan Watson 32 assists; Tianna Cummings 41 digs; Tori Crawford 9 kills; Chantelle Zamora 41 digs, 18 kills; Lexie Mahan 48 digs, 13 kills; Kennedy Snyder 15 digs; Devin Humphries 6 kills.
Chiawana--Sadie Sparks 30 kills, 7 blks, 32 digs; Shanita Hill 22 kills, 40 digs; Jamie Steach 74 assts, 6 aces; Shantelle Hill 12 kills, 5 blks, 22 digs; Madison Powers 7 kills, 8 blks; Jazmine Cartagena 35 digs; Maddie Heine 7 kills.
Warden 3, Entiat 0
WARDEN -- Hannah Bisnett led Warden with seven kills and four blocks to lift Warden to a Central Washington 2B home win over Entiat.
The Cougars (16-7, 9-3) secured the No. 3 seed in the South and will face Pateros, the North No. 2, at 10 a.m. Saturday.
Set scores: 25-16, 25-16, 25-20. Warden--Hannah Bisnett 7 kills, 4 blocks; Chelsea Brown 3 kills, 10 assists, 10 aces, 8 digs; Hayley Yamane 10 assists, 4 aces, 8 digs; Keisha Urwin 5 kills, 6 digs.
