Sports

Braves rally into Class 3A volleyball final

After losing the opening set against Monroe on Friday, Mt. Edgecumbe was on the verge of falling behind by two sets in the semifinal round at the Class 3A state volleyball tournament. His team trailing 22-15, Mt. Edgecumbe coach Michael Mahoney called perhaps the most important timeout of the Braves' season.

"I said, 'We're going to turn this around right now,' " Mahoney explained after his team's remarkable 3-1 win.

Mt. Edgecumbe scored the final 10 points of the second set and the first five of the third set to claim an improbable 18-25, 25-22, 25-14, 25-17 win that put the Braves in Saturday's 1 p.m. state final at the Alaska Airlines Center.

Mt. Edgecumbe senior Taryn White, whose numerous monster spikes earned her player-of-the-match honors, said the Braves never wavered despite facing a potential 2-0 hole.

"We just talked about believing in each other and playing with heart," said White, one of six seniors on the team. "I know we wanted it more."

Eden Cronk's ace finished the second set to tie things at 1-1. From that point on it was all Braves, who entered the tournament undefeated and looking for a third state title in four years.

"We're a senior-loaded team, so this is what we want," said White.

ADVERTISEMENT

Monroe, which didn't dropped a set in two Thursday matches, seemed shellshocked by the match's sudden turnaround. Rams coach David Obermeyer said a substitution error on his part took his team out of its rhythm.

"It's my fault," he said.

Monroe's Marissa King was a difference-maker early on, slamming home kill after kill as the Rams pulled away in the opening set. But the Braves adjusted, and King's outside hitting was effectively nullified the rest of the way.

"We had our blockers cheat a bit to the outside and that seemed to work," White said.

After losing the momentum, Obermeyer said Monroe was never able to regain its moxie. The Rams must now play the winner of Saturday's match between Nikiski and Grace Christian for a chance at a rematch with the Braves in the final. Nikiski defeated Barrow and Homer on Friday, while Grace rolled past Nome and Valdez in straight sets to stay alive.

Againt Valdez, Annie Vanderweide had 15 kills and Kinley Hickok added 10 for the Grizzlies, who also got 17 assists from Kaitlin Cowell and 11 digs from Bridgbet Broderick.

Following their win over Valdez, Grace players erupted in celebration.

Grizzlies coach Valerie Steele said she thinks her team will be more than ready for Saturday's 8 a.m. matchup against the Bulldogs.

"This is as amped as I've seen them," she said after Grace knocked off a team it hadn't beaten all season in the Buccaneers.

After two days of play, Mt. Edgecumbe remains the team to beat. Whichever team makes it out of the loser's bracket will have its hands full, White said.

"We're unstoppable when we play the way we're supposed to play," she said.

Contact Matt Tunseth at 257-4335 or mtunseth@alaskadispatch.com

Class 3A

Friday's results

Losers bracket

Nikiski 3, Barrow 1 (19-25, 25-15, 25-21, 25-21)

Grace Christian 3, Nome 0 (25-4, 25-11, 25-5)

Nikiski 3, Homer 2 (25-14, 25-18, 25-27, 17-25, 15-6)

ADVERTISEMENT

Grace 3, Valdez 0 (25-20, 25-21, 25-21)

Semifinal

Mt. Edgecumbe 3, Monroe 1 (18-25, 25-22, 25-14, 25-17)

Saturday's matches

Losers bracket

8 a.m. -- Nikiski vs. Grace

10 a.m. -- Monroe vs. Nikiski-Grace winner

Championship match

ADVERTISEMENT

1 p.m. -- Championship

2:45 p.m. -- If-necessary match (one set to 30 points)

Matt Tunseth

Matt Tunseth is a former reporter for the Anchorage Daily News and former editor of the Alaska Star.

ADVERTISEMENT