Richland volleyball has state aspirations

Kamry Breard has won a lot of volleyball matches in her days at Richland High School, but one thing has eluded the senior hitter — a trip to the state tournament.

That all could change this fall as the Bombers open the Mid-Columbia Conference/Greater Spokane League regional tournament Saturday.

Richland, which posted a perfect 14-0 record during the MCC regular season, will open regional play at

1 p.m. against Ferris on its home court.

“It’s really cool to go undefeated and be league champs,” Breard said. “Hopefully we can bring that into regionals. I haven’t been to state, but we have been close.”

The Bombers last went to state in 2012, when they finished eighth.

The 5-foot-10 Breard leads the Bombers in kills (117) and assists (274), and is second with 124 digs. She is complemented by fellow senior Sarah Howlett, who has 112 kills and 19 blocks. Howlett has plans to continue playing at Northwest University in Kirkland next fall.

But making everything run smoothly takes a lot of working parts. Two of those being sophomores Jordanne Bauder and Lindsay Rosenthal.

“We have a wide variety of ages, and they are resilient,” said Richland coach Bob Raidl, who is finishing his 14th year at the helm. “That’s why we are successful. Our strength is our depth and our defense. It is hard to key on any one player that we have. I have been fortunate.”

Bauder, whose mom, Jessica, was an outstanding player at Richland (1999 graduate), is second to Breard in assists (241) and has 94 digs.

“It’s a big jump going from JV setter to varsity,” Raidl said of Bauder. “She does everything pretty well. Her mom was a Bomber, and she has good genes. She hits in club, but she has embraced the role of setter.”

Bauder said there are perks to both positions, and said she hasn’t decided if she likes one over the other. “I haven’t figured that out for myself, yet.”

Rosenthal is third on the team in kills with 101 and has 75 digs.

“She is one of those volleyball-only kids,” Raidl said. “She’d had good coaches, she works hard and is athletic.”

Rosenthal and Bauder said they are excited to contribute at such a young age.

“They treat us as equals,” Rosenthal said of the upperclassmen. “We all get along so well. We are focused on our fundamentals. We have put an emphasis on our game and putting the ball away.”

Breard complimented the younger players and values their contributions.

“I think we have good chemistry, and we all get along so well,” Breard said. “They have done a good job for us.”

In other games at Richland on Saturday, Pasco takes on Central Valley at 1 p.m. The winners of each match will play at 3 p.m. Both will advance to play Nov. 5 at Richland High.

The losers will play at 3 p.m. in a loser-out match.

HANFORD AT MEAD: The Falcons may have to travel, but coach Nichelle Meador is happy to go anywhere if it means her team still is playing.

“This is super exciting,” Meador said. “They have been working really hard. To have it pay off is exciting.”

Hanford beat Walla Walla on Tuesday to advance to regionals at Mead High School, where they take on the Panthers at 3 p.m. Saturday.

It’s the first time the Falcons have been this far in the postseason since all the teams advanced three years ago.

The last time the Falcons advanced to state was 2007, when they won the state title.

“This is every coach’s dream,” Meador said.

Chiawana will play Gonzaga Prep at 1 p.m. Saturday at Mead. The winner will play the winner of the Hanford-Mead match at 7 p.m. The losers will play a loser-out match at 5 p.m.

3A Bi-District

Kamiakin and Mt. Spokane will host matches Saturday.

At Kamiakin, Kennewick (1-14) takes on Shadle Park at noon, with the winner playing Kamiakin (11-3) at 2 p.m. The winner of the second match advances to the championship match Nov. 5, while the loser will play for second place.

At Mt. Spokane, Southridge (10-4) will play Rogers at noon in a loser-out match. The winner plays Mt. Spokane at 2 p.m. with a trip to the title match on the line.

The top two teams get a “glue” crossover match with District 2 on Nov. 8.

This story was originally published October 28, 2016 at 7:49 PM with the headline "Richland volleyball has state aspirations."