PREP VOLLEYBALL
Raymond 3, Ilwaco 0
Raymond solidified its spot as the third seed in the upcoming 2B Distinct IV Tournament with a 3-0 home win over Ilwaco on Wednesday.
The Seagulls (9-5, 7-2 Pacific 2B) picked up the sweep 25-10, 25-19 and 25-19 in a match where the winner would finish the regular season in third place while the loser settled for fourth.
Raymond will be checking the scoreboard over the next couple of days to see if it will be playing Onalaska or Napavine in the first round of districts.
Raymond got off to a hot start in the opening set and jumped out to a 11-3 lead before Ilwaco (9-5, 6-3) called a timeout.
Raymond head coach Bob Swogger said it was good to see his team execute early.
“They finally met their potential, this was probably their best game of the year,” he said. “Ilwaco is a hard one for us because we compete with them all summer long, so they know us and we know them very well. We probably played at least 10 times in July. To be able to come out and do what we needed to do was pretty awesome.”
Raymond held off the Fishermen in the second and third sets despite falling behind early in the third game after a few hitting errors.
The Seagulls offense leaned heavily on Tina Sypaphay, who had a team-leading 10 kills. Sypaphay said she tries to use a little finesse on her shots in situations where the opposition expects a kill attempt with more force.
“Sometimes I don’t hit the ball as hard as I can. That’s kind of tricky for them,” she said. “With my form, they think I’m going to hit the ball hard and when I hit it, it’s softer. You have to trick them.”
Raymond’s Tina Sypaphay goes for a kill in the second set of a match against Ilwaco. Sypaphay led the Seagulls with 10 kills in the 3-0 win over the Fishermen. (Hasani Grayson | Grays Harbor News Group)
The service game also picked up some key points for the Seagulls. Raymond picked up 15 kills in the contest with Sidney Swogger coming away with five kills of her own. She was also a key part of the passing with 11 assists.
Raymond will get a couple of days off before the start of the district tournament on Saturday. Other than a few hitting and service errors Coach Swogger said he wants to see his team continue Wednesday’s assertive play.
“We just have to cut out some of the little mistakes that we make. Otherwise, I’m pretty happy with what we did tonight. We made good choices and stayed aggressive.”
Sypaphay seems to have an aggressive mentality as well and thinks the team can make some noise at districts.
“They’ll be days when we’re really down, but when we are at our potential we can execute and destroy the other team.”
Raymond 25 25 25 – 3
Ilwaco 10 19 19 – 0
Top Players: Raymond – Sypaphay (10 kills), Sidney Swogger (11 assists, 5 aces), Grace Busenius (3 blocks, 2 kills, 2 aces)
Ocosta 3, Pe Ell 0
On a special night for the Ocosta program, the Wildcats defeated Pe Ell in straight sets on Wednesday in Westport.
Ocosta (12-2, 8-1 Pacific 2B) won by scores of 25-16, 25-16 and 25-8.
Layne Martin led Ocosta in kills with 11 and Emily Snider finished with 21 assists to push her career school record to 323.
But the night belonged to longtime Ocosta head coach Barbara Rasmus, who was honored as she coached the final home game of her storied 29 year career at the helm of the Ocosta program.
“It’s been a fantastic year,” said Rasmus, whose team will be the league’s No. 2 seed entering the playoffs. “This team played well together with good communication.”
Pe Ell 16 16 8 — 0
Ocosta 25 25 25 — 3
Top Players: Ocosta — Martin (11 kills); Evalyn Marsh (15 digs, 16-16 service); Kiana Morrow (6 kills, 5 blocks); Lillyan Barnum (5 kills); Snider (21 assists)
— Ryan Sparks, Grays Harbor News Group
Life Christian 3, South Bend 0
The South Bend Indians closed out the regular sesaon with a straight-set loss to Life Christian Academy on Wednesday in Vancouver.
South Bend (2-12, 2-7 Pacific 2B) lost 25-21, 25-14 and 25-21 to finish in the eighth and final playoff spot in league heading into the 2B District IV Tournament.
Dayna Estle led the Indians with seven kills while libero Hannah Jewell added 12 digs and went a perfect 8-for-8 in service for South Bend.
South Bend finished league play tied with Pe Ell, but the Indians’ win over the Trojans on Monday acted as the tiebreaker, sending the Indians to the playoffs.
South Bend will face the top team out of the 2B Central League, the Mossyrock Vikings (12-1, 10-0), in the first round of the district tournament at 10 a.m. on Saturday at Mossyrock High School.
South Bend 21 14 21 — 0
Life Christian 21 14 21 — 3
Top Players: South Bend — Estle (7 kills, block); Raydynn Morley (15-17 service, 2 aces); Jewell (8-8 service, 12 digs)
— Ryan Sparks, Grays Harbor News Group
GIRLS PREP SOCCER
Life Christian 3, Ocosta 2
Ocosta saw its season come to an end in heart-breaking fashion, losing 3-2 to in a shootout to Life Christian Academy at Ocosta on Wednesday.
The Eagles struck first in the 26th minute, but the Wildcats tied up the contest a minute later with a goal from Kianna Battiste to tie the game at a goal apiece.
Natalie Carloza later put the ‘Cats up 2-1 in the 64th minute.
Life Christian Academy responded in the 75th minute with a free kick to knot the score again and eventually send the game into extra time.
The two teams played to a stalemate in overtime, but the Wildcats couldn’t keep up with the Eagles when it came time for the penalty-kick shootout.
Ocosta missed high and over the crossbar on its first three attempts while the Eagles converted on two of its first three kicks.
Wildcats keeper Devyn Martin kept her team alive with a diving save on Life Christian’s third kick, but the Eagles ended the match, and the Wildcats’ season, with a conversion on the fifth kick.
Ocosta head coach Mike King said he expects his team to come back stronger next year after dealing with numerous injuries this year.
“We had a good run this year with a very inexperienced team and numerous injuries. We have a good core returning, get two former starters back, and some young talent coming up,” he said. “We want to thank our seniors for a great season and providing outstanding leadership.”
Ocosta 1 1 (2-5 PK) — 2
Life Christian 1 1 (3-5 PK) — 3
Top Players: Ocosta –Battiste (G, 27th minute), Carloza (G, 64th minute)
