Lady Broncos conclude season at state tourney

Bronco fans, residents and students lined the streets on Thursday afternoon to cheer on and celebrate the LRS Lady Broncos as they headed for the Yakima SunDome to compete in the State 2B Volleyball Tournament.

The 12 young athletes and coaches prepped for the state tournament by focusing on the basics and reminding themselves of elements that proved successful in the past. When the Lady Broncos took to the court early Friday morning, the team members displayed their excitement for competing at the state tournament, but remained focused on proving themselves as a competitor.

“We just kind of went into it thinking, ‘play our game no matter what happens, and control what we can control,’” head coach Cari Galbreath explained as the team prepped for the match.

The Lady Broncos faced Kittitas in the first match of the tournament, and after initially trailing Kittitas in the first set, the Lady Broncos quickly got their bearings. The team began cautiously as they adjusted to the six-court playing arena, and had to learn to tune out distractions and focus on the match in front of them.

After a few early game adjustments, the Lady Broncos overwhelmed Kittitas and rushed to a first set win of 25-15. The LRS team did not waste a minute and continued the momentum into the second set to prove their worth on the court.

The Lady Broncos dominated in the second set with a score of 25-13. The team communicated effectively, rotated to provide coverage at the net and found success with ball placement, both on hits and serves.

After handily winning the first two sets, the Lady Broncos did not let the early success prevent them from playing solid volleyball. The team remained focused on starting every defense play with a solid pass to the setter to line up the team’s top hitting duo of Dalyn Killian and Mallory Kessler at the net.

The consistency of play helped the Lady Broncos sweep the match against Kittitas as the girls rolled to a 25-14 victory in the third set. The LRS team’s excitement was palpable, as the players rushed off the court to celebrate with their teammates and coaches.

“We had a good group effort, everybody was energetic and focused on getting that victory,” Galbreath said of the first match.

The Kittitas match proved how close-knit the group is and displayed the extreme energy the group possesses, as they rushed to celebrate together after every point. The Lady Broncos possess a unique quality that is not always visible with sports teams. They are the very definition of what a team should be. The energy, encouragement and celebration they share on the court makes it clear they are a team, and the support they show for one another is a key reason for their successful season.

“Good chemistry,” Galbreath stated, “that’s been one of those things that has made this season so special. It’s been that good team chemistry.”

During the Kittitas match, Killian led the team with 12 kills, three blocks, two aces and two digs. Kessler added 10 kills, two blocks, one ace and two digs. Sydney Nelson provided 13 assists, four digs, one ace, one block and one kill. Jenna Bennett contributed 12 assists, eight kills, seven digs and two aces. Soraida Chavez had five digs and one ace. Tessa Jantz put up three kills, one assist, one block and one dig. Maya Wahl had two kills and one dig. Jana Mattox had five digs.

The team only had about five hours of downtime before they returned to the court to face the Darrington Loggers. Galbreath said the quick turnaround time was hard to prepare for a team the Lady Broncos were not familiar with, but the girls knew they needed to focus, as a win in the second match would guarantee them a trophy.

The Lady Broncos faced an aggressive Darrington team, who determined the tempo from the first point of the game. The Lady Broncos attempted to make adjustments to remain competitive in the first set, but Galbreath explained the team could not get into their groove and the LRS team lost the first set, 12-25.

Darrington’s dominate advantage was in their serving game, as the team proved to be consistently tough servers. The Lady Broncos have struggled with serve receive throughout the season, and Darrington’s ability to continually change the serve and place the ball where they wanted, proved to be a challenge for the Lady Broncos.

After Darrington went up by a double-digit lead in the second set, the Lady Broncos regrouped and upped the intensity. They returned to what had proved successful for them against Kittitas: enthusiasm and encouragement.

Nelson stepped up to the serving stripe for the Lady Broncos and served for seven consecutive points, helping narrow the scoring gap for the LRS team. Nelson served 100 percent during the match.

The Lady Broncos efforts fell short and Darrington rolled to a 16-25 win, but the Lady Broncos refused to let the Lady Loggers sweep the match. The Lady Broncos came out on the court strong during the third set and instantly took the lead.

The LRS team held the lead until 15 points when Darrington tied and eventually took a two-point lead over the Lady Broncos. But the LRS team remained vigilant and battled to take the lead back from Darrington, eventually winning the third set 25-23.

The fourth set went handily in favor of Darrington as the Lady Broncos continue to struggle with serve receive. The Lady Broncos ended Friday’s play with a loss to Darrington, 16-25.

“Unfortunately we didn’t play our best game,” Galbreath said. “Sometimes the sets were there, and the hitters didn’t convert. Sometimes the sets weren’t there and the hitters were put in a hard spot.”

Bennett had 12 assists, seven kills and four digs in the match. Nelson had eight assists, five digs and four kills. Killian had 10 digs, nine kills, two blocks and one assist. Kessler had five kills, one block and one dig. Jantz had four kills and one block. Chavez had six digs and one ace. Wahl had four kills, three digs and one ace.

The Lady Broncos returned to the court early Saturday morning and Galbreath said while the team had been deflated by the previous night’s loss, they knew they had to gear up and focus for the match at hand.

The team proved they were not ready to go home yet when they pushed the first set of the day against Morton-White Pass (MWP) to 28-26, with the win going in favor of the Lady Broncos. The team displayed their athleticism and focused on finishing every play.

The second set began to display the fatigue the Lady Broncos athletes had began to feel during the two-day tournament and continuous play. MWP proved successful at the net with tips, as the Lady Broncos were unable to provide solid coverage at the net. MWP took the second set win, 20-25.

The Lady Broncos began rebuilding their enthusiasm and focusing on the basics, but again struggled to remain consistent on the court.

A last second communication error by the Lady Broncos gave MWP the match point and the third set win, 20-25.

MWP came out on the court strong, and began to take a substantial lead over the Lady Broncos. The girls were determined to compete and narrowed the scoring gap. MWP eventually earned the match win and ended the Lady Broncos’ state experience with a 21-25 fourth set score.

Bennett had 16 assists, 10 kills and eight digs. Nelson had 13 assists, one kill, one ace and one dig. Killian had 15 kills, three aces, two digs and one block. Kessler had seven kills, three blocks, two aces and one dig. Chavez had three digs and one ace. Wahl had four kills, three aces, two assists, one block and one dig. Mattox had eight digs. Elizabeth Schofstoll had one kill and one ace.

“I think our win against Kittitas was one of those good moments. We made it to state and were able to play well in that environment, it’s so chaotic there,” Galbreath said as the tournament highlight. “I think that win kind of represented our season. It’s about relishing the good moments and being successful. And watching the girls celebrate and be so emotional in their celebrations, that kind of summed up our season.”