PREP VOLLEYBALL: Pasco sweeps Walla Walla
The Pasco girls volleyball team and coach Jackie Fluaitt are looking forward to building the Bulldogs program from the ground up.
After Tuesday’s 25-23, 25-15, 25-18 Mid-Columbia Conference home victory over Walla Walla in Pasco, it looks like the Bulldogs have some solid ground to start construction.
“We played really well, and we played in system,” Fluaitt said. “Walla Walla had some amazing hitters, but we were able to pass well out of serve receive and finish the game.”
Catelyn Linke led both teams with 16 kills, while Lacey Ortiz collected 31 digs. Setter Victoria Estes piled up 28 assists to help set her team up for success.
“We’re building. We have three sophomores and a freshman that are up and coming,” Fluaitt said.
Set scores: Pasco 25-23, 25-15, 25-18. Pasco—Victoria Estes 28 assists; Catelyn Linke 16 kills; Lacey Ortiz 31 digs.
Southridge 3, Hanford 0: The Suns, who finished third in last year’s Class 3A state tournament, opened MCC play with a road victory over the Falcons.
The Suns finished with 81 digs, led by Makenna Behrens’ 27 and Jordan Mix’s 15.
“We lost three key players (from) last year, but that’s pretty much the offense,” Southridge coach John Lengphounpraseut said. “Our defense is still going to be solid.”
Mix also had 17 kills, and Kamaile Moody recorded 31 assists.
Kalyn Smith finished with 14 digs for Hanford, which dropped the final set 25-20.
“Our girls were really excited to play Southridge,” Hanford coach Kate Mitchell said. “They’re a great team. They just outplayed us in the end, but in the third game, we saw a lot of improvement out of ourselves.”
Set scores: Southridge 25-14, 25-9, 25-20. Southridge—Jordan Mix 17 kills, 15 digs; Alyssa Palmer 9 kills, 14 digs; Maddisen McNeill 8 kills, 5 blocks; Leilani Moody 4 kills, 3 blocks; Makenna Behrens 27 digs; Kamaile Moody 31 assists, 7 digs. Hanford—Kalyn Smith 14 digs; Reilee Williams 5 kills.
Kamiakin 3, Richland 1: Nicole Lee had 10 kills and Rachel Leshikar had 32 digs to lead the Braves over the Bombers in the MCC opener for both teams at Kamiakin High School.
“We had some season-opening nerves, for sure, but we worked through it,” said Braves coach Mary Opitz.
Hailey Turner led the Bombers with eight kills, and Sarah McCormick chipped in 22 digs.
“We battled really hard all night, particularly in sets 2, 3 and 4, but we committed too many service and hitting errors against a talented Kamiakin team,” Richland coach Bob Raidl said.
Set scores: Kamiakin 25-17, 25-21, 22-25, 25-23. Richland—Hailey Turner 8 kills, 10 digs; Lexi Lacey 6 digs; Noelle Craft 9 digs; Rachel Connolly 13 digs; Alicia Maul 12 digs; Sarah McCormick 22 digs. Kamiakin—Nicole Lee 10K; Andrea Stapleton 8K, 3B; Lindsey Schauble 5K, 3B; Dani Burke 16 asst; Rachel Leshikar 32 digs.
Chiawana 3, Kennewick 0: The Riverhawks rolled to a three-game sweep of the visiting Lions in the MCC opener.
McKaiden Moore and Megan Steach each had nine kills, while Natasha Hill had seven kills and six ace serves.
Kaylee Hagadorn led Kennewick with 10 digs and nine assists, while Julisa Gonzalez chalked up 20 digs.
Set scores: Chiawana 25-22, 25-20, 25-22. Kennewick—Breanna Shaffer 8 kills, 8 digs; Julisa Gonzalez 20 digs; Kaylee Hagadorn 10 digs, 9 assists. Chiawana—McKaiden Moore 9K, 2 aces; Megan Steach 9K, 1B; Natasha Hill 7K, 6 aces; Cara Gilmore 6K, 3B; Ashtin Olin 30 asst.
Prosser 3, Columbia-Burbank 2: The Coyotes won the first two games of the match, but the Mustangs rallied for the nonleague win in Burbank.
Set scores: Prosser 22-25, 20-25, 25-23, 25-21, 15-13. Burbank—McKenzie Small 6K, 5B; Sami Ricard 6K, 24-25 serv; Carissa Gradwohl 12 asst; Sarah Forsythe 20 digs.
TC prep 3, Sunnyside Christian 2: Katie McDonald had 15 kills and Corinne Barnett added 14 as the Jaguars beat the Knights in a nonleague match in Pasco.
Set scores: Tri-Cities Prep 25-12, 25-19, 24-26, 15-25, 15-13. Tri-Cities Preps—Claire Essex 18 asst; Danika 18 asst.; Corinne Barnett 14K; Katie McDonald 15K; Mary Seiner 53 digs.
This story was originally published September 9, 2014 at 11:12 PM with the headline "PREP VOLLEYBALL: Pasco sweeps Walla Walla."