Lady Pirates battle their way to State

WALLA WALLA–The Lady Pirates earned a berth in the 1B Volleyball State Tournament, which opens today in Yakima, by fighting their way up through the consolation bracket after first beating Prescott, losing to Liberty Christian, beating DeSales on their home court last Saturday then gutting out a five-set win over St. John-Endicott/LaCrosse for the state berth.

Pomeroy holds a 19-7 record and takes on Mount Vernon Christian Thursday morning, November 10 at 11:45 at the Yakima SunDome.

"I am so proud of the way our girls fought and never lost faith in themselves," commented Coach Adam Van Vogt after the come-from-behind win over the Lady Eagles. "I've seen so many teams, the majority in fact, go quietly after losing a game like we did game 3. To regroup the way we did says so much about the character of these girls and I am so thankful for their faith in themselves, their abilities, and the decisions made by the coaching staff that helped us to this thrilling victory."

Pomeroy came out "emotional and focused," winning the first set 26-24. But the Lady Eagles won the second set 25-10 and gave the Lady Pirates a 25-12 thumping in the third set.

"A lot of teams would have ceded game four after a long and emotional day," Van Vogt said, "but our girls regrouped and fought to win game four and set up a decisive game five, where the winner would advance and the loser would see their season end. Our girls came out and built up a lead and never looked back."

Game four was a 25-23 thriller and then Pomeroy took the match in the fifth set, 15-10.

Jillian Herres made 41 assists, 17 digs with 20/20 serving; Haliee Brewer counted 12 kills and 11 digs with 15/15 serving and an ace; Kendall Dixon pounded 13 kills and 4 ace serves; Clara Jentz hit five kills and five blocks; Chase Caruso made 30 digs; Katie Boyer had 9 digs; KayLee Schmidt counted 11 digs and was 14/15 serving; Taylor Gilbert hammered seven kills and Jadence Gingerich made three kills.

Saturday's first match at DeSales was a loser-out, must-win contest on the Lady Irish's home court, but Pomeroy prevailed 25-20, 25-21, 25-23. "DeSales didn't make a lot of errors," Van Vogt said. "Our girls simply outplayed them and forced the action in a sweep."

Herres made 35 assists and was 14/15 serving with two aces; Brewer slammed 9 kills; Dixon had 11 kills and 3 blocks with 11/11 serving; Jentz: hit five kills and four blocks; Caruso had 14 digs and was 14/15 serving with an ace; Gilbert counted nine kills and seven digs; Hannah Bagby made one kill and two blocks; Schmidt made 5 digs and was 11/11 serving with two aces; and Boyer contributed seven digs.

At Liberty Christian on November 3, the Lady Pirates' game was off, losing 21-25, 19-25, 21-25. "After serving 97% in the first match, we served only 85% this match and made more passing and communication errors than normal," the coach commented.

Herres made 27 assists and was 13/14 serving; Dixon hammered 10 kills and was 9/9 serving; and Gilbert registered seven kills.

At home November 1, Prescott fell 25-9, 25-7, 25-16. "We were aggressive and really didn't ever let Prescott get going," Van Vogt said.

Herres was perfect serving 14/14 with three aces; Brewer notched 10 kills and four aces; Dixon made five kills and was 8/8 serving with an ace; Schmidt was 15/16 serving with four aces; Caruso made 10 digs and was 13/13 serving with three aces; and Gilbert pounded six kills.

Five Pirates received All-League consideration: Kendall Dixon made First Team. Chase Caruso, Haliee Brewer, and Taylor Gilbert made Second team and Jillian Herres received Honorable Mention.