TACOMA — There’s a new top dog in Class 3A District 3 volleyball for the first time in four years.
The three-time reigning district champion North Thurston fell to Central Kitsap in straight sets 25-19, 25-22, 27-25, Saturday, Nov. 14 at Mount Tahoma High School in the district semifinals.
North Thurston, already headed to the 3A state tournament, grew stronger in each set against the eventual district champion Central Kitsap, including a 27-25 barnburner in the third set. But the Rams couldn’t match their magic from their comeback win from down 2-1 against White River in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, Nov. 11.
“I think we could have played better. I don’t think we had the same energy we did against White River, which is typical when you’re playing a league team,” North Thurston head coach Jackie Meyer said. “We executed some of the stuff that we were working on in practice against people that we wanted to keep an eye on and make sure that they didn’t dominate the game.”
One of those people was Boise State University signee Sydney Lingenbrink, a 6-foot-2 middle blocker who had her way against the Rams in the first set. She helped the Cougars run off six points in a row in a 10-4 start.
Kaelani Adams, North Thurston’s hero from its comeback win over White River on Wednesday, went back and forth with Lingenbrink to narrow Central Kitsap’s lead and eventually take the lead at 16-15. In a trend that would last through the title match, the Cougars caught fire late in the set and finished off the Rams 25-19 with a 10-3 run. Manaia Pasi pounded three kills during that run, and Lingenbrink blocked a pair of Rams attacks.
Back-to-back aces by Liah Lauifi and more emphatic kills by Lingenbrink kickstarted Central Kitsap’s 12-4 start in set two. Central Kitsap’s block, which towered over North Thurston’s, didn’t allow many Rams attacks to drop in bounds early in the frame until North Thurston went on a 10-3 run to take an 18-17 lead. Abby Losey took over on both offense and defense to spark the rally, and a block by sophomore Alena Fairley put the Rams in front for the first time in the set.
Central Kitsap scored seven of the final 10 points, and the last three, to win in come-from-behind fashion 25-22.
Three days after reverse sweeping White River in the quarterfinals, North Thurston looked to do it again to save its district title hopes on Saturday. The Rams just wouldn’t back down against the powerful Cougars, responding to every run with a spurt of their own. Their 7-1 run to take a 14-13 advantage midway through the third set forced the first CK timeout of the game.
North Thurston led in all three sets but never held a lead larger than two points against Central Kitsap. In set three, the Rams battled through 11 ties, five lead changes and even a 24-21 deficit, scoring on four set-point opportunities to make it 25-25.
Central Kitsap seniors Ashlyn Manchester and Alaina Wright completed the sweep with back-to-back kills that booked the Cougars into the district title game against Timberline, which it won in four sets.
Meyer was impressed with how close North Thurston played Central Kitsap in all three sets despite some execution issues.
“I don’t think we were as crisp today. I think our passing was a little off, and we just weren’t making the connections that we did on Wednesday, which is hard because then you don’t create that momentum," Meyer said. “I’m actually pretty happy with how close the games were. Their fight lately has been amazing.”
Losey led the Rams with 10 kills and 12 digs, while setter Jazlyn Strachan capped off an impressive district tournament with 21 assists and 12 digs.
North Thurston (14-6) will head to Yakima next week for the 3A state tournament to defend its state title. The 3A bracket will be released by the WIAA on Sunday, Nov. 15.
