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Volleyball team comes from behind to defeat Columbia Basin in first round
The Advocate
After dropping the first set of their opening match in the NWAACC Championships Thursday against Columbia Basin Community College, the Saints rallied to pull out a four-set victory (24-26, 25-14, 27-25 and 25-17).
The Saints now play Whatcom Community College today at 12:30 p.m. in the MHCC gym. The Orcas beat Pierce Community College in round one of the double-elimination tournament.
The Saints struggled through the first set against Columbia Basin but came back to win the next three.
“We got into a huddle after the first set and just said, ‘We have to refocus,’” said outside hitter Kyra Speer. “We had to focus and come out strong.”
“It was expected,” said MHCC Head Coach Chelsie Freeman. “If you think about it, we have 12 girls who have never played in an NWAACC tournament before. We played well.”
After winning the second set, the Saints were close to losing the third until the Hawks handed the set to the Saints.
“Set three was critical for us,” said Columbia Basin Head Coach John Patrick.
“We were up 23-21 but had three hitting errors which completely changed the momentum of the match to their favor.”
Freeman told her team to be patient. “I just told the girls we need to play one point at a time,” she said. “I told them we couldn’t win the match here so just play it one point at a time.”
Patrick was philosophical about the defeat. “We hung in their with them. Stat- wise, they were a better team than us. They set well and played steady the whole match. We kept up with them and had them where we wanted.”
For the Saints, Speer finished the match with 22 kills and hit .250 for the Saints. Freeman said the Saints also got a big match from Liz Williams, who subbed for Taylor Canoso.
“I have been going back and forth on them all season,” she said. “I played Liz and she played great for us. She served a lot for us and played great defense.”
Sophomore Jaci Chew-Dorsey broke out of a shell for the Saints, according to Freeman. “Jaci was swinging everywhere for us,” said Freeman. “Even when they were going for a block, she kept going.”
In the fourth and final set, the Saints never looked back and finished off the Hawks with steady play.
As for the match against Whatcom in round two, Freeman said, “We have never played them and you never know what to expect. We just need to come in and play our A-game against them.”
Whatcom finished the regular season as the second seed in the North Region with a 10-2 record. Overall, they were 25-10.
“In practice, we have been getting mentally prepared for this tournament,” said Speer. “We haven’t been looking ahead and just taking each game one at a time.”
If the Saints beat Whatcom, they will play at 6:30 p.m. Friday. If the Saints lose, they will play at 11:45 a.m. Saturday in the losers bracket.
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