YAKIMA – Two Clark County teams entered the Class 4A/3A state volleyball tournament with hopes of finally getting into the final four.
But Prairie and Camas both fell narrowly short, each losing a hard-fought quarterfinal match Friday at the Yakima Valley SunDome.
No. 3 seed Prairie was aiming for its first state semifinal berth since winning the title in 2012. The Falcons got a perfect start in the quarterfinals, winning the first set over No. 6 Mount Spokane 25-14.
But the Wildcats (17-4) came back with a vengeance, winning the next two sets 25-16 and 25-18 before taking a 20-13 lead in the fourth set.
That’s when Prairie (17-4) showed the toughness befitting the Class 3A Greater St. Helens League champs. The Falcons crept back, eventually tying the fourth set 22-22. But Mount Spokane steadied itself to win 25-23 and book a spot in the semifinals against No. 2 North Thurston.
Prairie coach Jen Palmer praised the fight her team showed in the fourth set.
“They’re gamers,” Palmer said. “They’re competitors. Every day in practice that’s the team we saw. I never had to ask them to work hard or compete.”
Prairie now aims to earn fifth place for the second year in a row. That begins Saturday morning in the fifth-place semifinal against No. 10 White River.
“We just want to bring home some hardware,” Palmer said. “We’ve got four seniors but we’ve got some young ones who are watching. We’ve got some athletes who are setting the tone for the future. It’s not what we wanted today, but we’re not done here.”
Prairie opened tournament play by turning away a stingy No. 14 seed Kennewick, which had to win a loser-out match in the morning to reach the round of 16.
The Falcons won the first set 25-23 before dropping the second 25-18. Prairie finished strong in close third and fourth sets, winning 25-21 and 25-20.
Gracie Jacoby had 22 kills and 13 digs. Claire Neuman had 14 kills and Alivia Snyder had 16 digs and five blocks.
Camas, the No. 5 seed in the Class 4A tournament, pushed No. 4 Lake Stevens to five sets. The Papermakers forced a fifth set by staving off two match points to win the fourth set 28-26.
But Lake Stevens took control of the fifth set early, eventually winning 15-10. Ella Thompson led Camas with 20 kills, Emmah Sanchez had 26 digs while Quinn Pedersen and Shaylee Stephen each had 11 kills.
It’s the fourth consecutive year Camas has lost in the quarterfinals, including two in a row to Lake Stevens.
Now, the Papermakers (20-3) will try to earn a state trophy for the second consecutive year and the third time in the last four tournaments. Camas faces No. 9 Davis in the fifth-place semifinal on Saturday morning.
Camas had to grind out a first-round win over No. 12 Glacier Peak in four sets. After the Grizzlies won the second set 25-22, Camas finally capitalized on its sixth set point to win the third set 28-26. The Papermakers then clinched the match by taking the fourth set 25-21.
Thompson had a team-high 18 kills along with eight digs. Kendall Mairs and Stephen were solid at the net, combining for 12 blocks. Sanchez had 17 digs.
