The prep athletic season officially began on Wednesday with teams from Montesano and Elma opening their respective seasons.
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PREP VOLLEYBALL
Montesano 3, Shelton 0
Montesano opened its season with a straight-set victory over Shelton on Wednesday at Shelton High School.
The Bulldogs (1-0 overall) won by scores of 25-18, 25-13 and 25-9.
After poor passing led to a slow start for Monte in the first set, the Bulldogs offense got rolling in over the final two sets to secure the season-opening victory.
“We got off to a bit of a slow start tonight, first game jitters I think. We were not passing well at all in the first set, which means nothing else was able to click,” Monte head coach Cindy Wecker said. “They did much better in the second and third set, passing improved and they just relaxed a bit and started having fun.”
The Bulldogs were led by senior setter Karissa Otterstetter and senior middle blocker Kylee Wisdom. Otterstetter went 16 of 17 from the service line with 17 digs and a team-high 17 assists while Wisdom was 18 of 19 in service with a team-best five aces to go along with 10 digs, seven kills and five blocks.
Senior Liv Robinson was a perfect 15 for 15 from the service line and led the Bulldogs with 19 digs.
Fellow senior Kaila Hatton led Monte with 11 kills from her outside hitter spot.
Montesano is schedule to participate in the Hoquiam Volleyball Jamboree at 4 p.m. on Thursday.
The Bulldogs’ next scheduled game is against Adna at 6:30 p.m. on Monday in Montesano.
Montesano 25 25 25 – 3
Shelton 18 13 9 – 0
Leading players: Montesano – Robinson (15-15 service, 3 aces, 19 digs, 2 kills, block); Wisdom (18-19 service, 5 aces, 10 digs, 7 kills, 5 blocks); Otterstetter (16-17 service, 3 aces, 17 digs, 4 kills, 17 assists, block); Hatton (5-5 service, 11 kills, assist); Gooding (4-7 service, 8 digs, kill).
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BOYS PREP GOLF
Montesano 167, Elma 184
Elma and Montesano opened the season by renewing their East County Rivalry, with Montesano earning a 167-184 victory on Wednesday at Oaksridge Golf Course in Elma.
Monte’s scores for its top four golfers were about as tight as could be. The Bulldogs were led by Caden Grubb’s 9-hole round of 41, followed closely by teammates Colton Grubb, Ayden Sauer and Rufus Krasowski, each finishing with a score of 42.
Elma was led by Robby Allen, who shot a 41 to earn a share of Medalist of the Match honors with Caden Grubb.
“First match of the year with plenty of nerves to show for it on each team. We knew it would be a tough match with both teams playing at their home course,” Elma head coach Collin McMaster said. “Monte has a great squad this year and that was relevant in the consistency of their scores. It is hard to compete against four scores that are 42 or better, so hats off to them. I’m proud of our boys though and it’s promising to see Robby pick up where he left off last year with a solid round.”
Monte will face Tenino at 3:30 p.m. on Monday at Oaksridge.
Elma takes on Rochester at 3:30 p.m. on Monday at Riverside Golf Course in Chehalis.
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Montesano (167) – Caden Grubb 41, Colton Grubb 42, Ayden Sauer 42, Rufus Krasowski 42.
Elma (184) – Robby Allen 41, T.J. Dunlap 45, Brody Palmer 49, Cole Niemi 49.