4A volleyball: Mead holds off Curtis for state title

KENNEWICK — That sour taste has turned so sweet.

A time of regret rolled into one of rejoicing.

All is right in the Mead High School volleyball world again. The Panthers from Spokane are back on top.

But it was anything but easy. Curtis made certain of that. The third-ranked Vikings pushed Mead to the brink before falling in the title match, 23-25, 25-27, 26-24, 25-23, 15-12.

The Panthers (32-2) simply would not be denied, not again. Not 12 months after their five-year championship run ended with a bitter seventh-place finish here at the Toyota Center. Alexis Olgard, their 6-foot-5 rock in the middle, made sure of that with 33 kills, 10 blocks and 13 digs. Even down 20-12 in the third set, she showed no fear.

"I knew we could do it," Olgard said, recalling the semifinal victory over Rogers of Puyallup her sophomore year that came after an 0-2 start. "They're a good team. They fought hard. They wanted it just as bad as us. We just pushed a little harder."

Despite the heartbreaking loss, Curtis (23-4) took pride in the school's best volleyball finish.

"We made history for Curtis, that's one thing to be proud of," said senior Emily Cotter, who pounded 26 kills in the loss. "We played our hearts out, another thing to be proud of. We fought and had so much heart and we wanted it so bad.

"I'm proud of all of these girls. It's been an amazing journey to make it this far. It sucks it has to end this way, but I'm not disappointed."

Mead and Curtis both advanced to the championship match with 3-0 victories in the semifinals. Mead, which suffered its only two losses in California, took down No. 2 Graham-Kapowsin, 25-15, 25-14, 25-20. No one else had gotten even that close.

In the other semifinal, Curtis dashed Auburn Riverside's championship hopes, 25-16, 28-26, 25-20. It was the Vikings' third win of the season over Riverside, which let a 25-20 lead get away in the second set. Curtis, Auburn Riverside and Graham-Kapowsin are members of the South Puget Sound League.

Other matches

Auburn Riverside 3, Graham-Kapowsin 0, 3rd/6th

Brooke Bray capped an outstanding tournament with 17 kills, 10 digs and 5 blocks as the fourth-ranked Ravens (27-8) avenged two earlier losses to the Eagles. No. 2 G-K (31-6), a fifth-year school, was making its first state appearance.

Lewis and Clark 3, Olympia 1, 4th/7th

Despite major graduation losses off last year's championship team, the Tigers (18-9) took home another trophy, their fifth straight. Olympia finished 32-5.

Issaquah 3, Jackson 0, 5th/8th

Stephanie Stoll and Alyssa Shultz combined for 25 kills as the Eagles (23-9) won their final three matches after dropping the opener to Kentwood,, a match they led 2-0. It's their best finish since taking third in the 2005 3A tournament. Leigh-Ann Haataja had 12 kills and 11 digs for Jackson (24-6), a first-time trophy winner.