Outlaws volleyball takes third at State

The Lady Outlaws volleyball squad finished third at the state tournament, held at Springfield High School on Friday and Saturday, November 4-5.

Sisters started the tourney with a sweep over the St. Mary Crusaders in the quarterfinals. The first set was back-and-forth until midway through, when the Outlaws pulled ahead and recorded the win. Bailey Robertson had several nice blocks and Gracelyn Myhre put down several hard kills. With the Outlaws ahead 21-13 Mia Monaghan went back to the service line and served Sisters to a 25-13 finish. The last point came off a great block from Robertson.

Gracie Vohs was on fire in the second set and recorded cross-court kills, numerous serving aces, and led the way to the Outlaws’ 25-17 win. In the third set, it was knotted up five times before the score hit 12-12. From there the Outlaws surged ahead and recorded the sweep. Vohs, Myhre, and Robertson all were instrumental in the win with cross-court kills, kills down the line, and others that were sent straight down to the middle of the court. Vohs was also superb at the service line and finished the game with 14 aces.

Sisters advanced to the semifinals where they faced the Valley Catholic(VC) Valiants. VC came into the match determined to beat the Outlaws. They put together a good game plan and the Outlaws struggled from the get-go. Sisters was never able to get into any rhythm or into system. They served the ball out of bounds or in the net, hit the ball out, and struggled on serve-receive. They lost the match in three straight sets with scores of 16-25, 20-25, and 15-25. The Valiants went on to win the tournament with a three-set sweep over Burns in the championship game.

The Outlaws headed into a third- or fifth-place finish on Saturday against league opponent Siuslaw, who the Outlaws had beat twice in league, both in three straight sets.

This time around was no different. The Outlaws went into the game with momentum and confidence, wanting to finish the tournament with a win. Sisters recorded a sweep over the Vikings with scores of 25-17, 25-17, 25-9.

“We stepped onto the floor much calmer in this match” said Coach Rory Rush. “We were gritty and ready to play. We were playing to win, not to lose. In the previous match I felt we were playing not to lose, and there’s a big difference in your mentality.”

The entire match was marked by excellent serving from the Outlaws. Siuslaw was out of sync, didn’t seem prepared, and couldn’t get into their offense. In the first set, Mia Monaghan had a four-point serving run with two aces and Gracie Vohs tallied seven kills.

It was much of the same in the second set. Robertson had a seven-point serving run with two aces and Vohs put down seven kills. Holly Davis had two great serving runs in the third set, the first six points with one ace, and the second five points and one ace. Vohs had five kills in the set and a total of 22 kills in the match.

Rush said, “All the pieces came together in this match. We hustled, had great kills, played smart offensively, and were aggressive yet successful from the service line. It was a total team effort and a different vibe from the previous match. It was exciting to end the season with a win and a third-place finish.”

Vohs finished the tournament with 52 kills and 17 aces, followed by Robertson who logged 20 kills and 20 blocks. Myhre recorded 17 kills and 30 digs and Monaghan tallied 62 digs and 10 aces. Hannah Fendall dished out 79 assists.

Gracie Vohs was a unanimous first-team all-tournament pick, and Gracelyn Myhre was selected second-team all-tournament.

“As one of our captains Gracie led our team both statistically and off the floor with humility all season,” said Rush. “She is a special player that has grown in her skill in leaps and bounds over the three years in our high school program. I am so proud of the player and person she is becoming! It was exciting for Gracie to be recognized by other coaches with a unanimous vote for first-team all-tournament.”

Of Myhre, Rush said, “As one of our other captains, Gracelyn led our team with integrity and grace. She is someone we all relied on and leaned on throughout the season. Her contributions to our program, and the personal relationships she has forged with her team, is something that is a joy to watch. I am so thankful for the hard work both on and off the floor she has shown this season. It was nice everyone else saw that, by voting her to the second-team all-tournament.”