By Nov. 12—Box Score
At Yakima Valley SunDome
LOGGERS 3, BRAVES 0
La Conner 12 13 17 — 0
Onalaska 25 25 25 — 3
LOGGERS 3, CRUSADERS 0
NW Christian16 22 13 — 0
Onalaska 25 25 25 — 3
YAKIMA — Onalaska coach Susan Gordon has been amazed by her team at several points throughout this season.
Another one of those times came in the Loggers' first game in the 2B State Tournament in Yakima on Wednesday, when setter Braelyn Babb tweaked her ankle. Gordon immediately looked towards Alyxandrea Jarvis on the bench, and the freshman backup setter didn't hesitate to step in.
"Her first comment was 'what do I need to do for this team?'" Gordon said when recalling a conversation between her and Jarvis earlier this season. "That's what speaks volumes about this team to me."
Jarvis helped No. 2 Onalaska sweep No. 15 La Conner 25-12, 25-13, 25-17, and the Loggers followed that victory with a 25-16, 25-22, 25-13 sweep of No. 7 Northwest Christian (Colbert), putting them into the state semifinals for the first time since 2004.
"We just played great," Gordon said. "It goes back to all 14 of them just playing hard."
Onalaska rolled in the sweep over La Conner, but Northwest Christian gave them some trouble in the second set.
Down 1-0, the Crusaders didn't go quietly, as they scored four straight points out of a timeout to take a commanding 20-16 lead in the second set.
After another timeout, Onalaska settled in, going on a 6-2 run to tie the set at 22 before rattling off three straight points to win the set. The third set wasn't in doubt for long, as the Loggers built a commanding lead before finishing off the win.
Against La Conner, Emalie Jacoby tallied 14 kills, nine digs, six assists, and five aces, and Faith Hammer tallied eight kills, five blocks, and five aces.
Sommer Hammer added eight kills, Babb logged 14 assists and nine digs, Capri McGraw tallied 10 digs, and Karsyn Koenig collected three blocks. Both Ellie Jacoby and Kori Navolynski added nine digs.
Against Northwest Christian, Emalie Jacoby finished with 17 kills and 17 digs, Sommer Hammer added seven kills and seven blocks , and McGraw logged five kills. Sommer Hammer and Koenig also both delivered an ace.
Babb, who was feeling better after tending to her ankle during the break between games, dished out 23 assists, Ellie Jacoby recorded 20 digs, and Faith Hammer had eight blocks.
The last time that the Loggers were in the state semifinals was 2004, when they made the 1A semis before finishing third.
Because the Loggers (18-1) have made the semifinals, they are guaranteed to finish in the top four, which would mark their best finish since that 2004 season.
If Onalaska is able to win its semifinal, it will advance to the state title game for the first time since 2001, when the Loggers posted their best finish in school history (according to the WIAA website) with a second-place finish in the 1A tournament.
In the semis, Onalaska will go up against a team that they've seen often over the past couple of summers.
The Loggers have gone to a summer camp in Ritzville in recent years, and they often face the Tonasket Tigers, who are also in attendance at the same camp.
The sixth-seeded Tigers also won both of their matchups on Wednesday, setting up an autumn clash for the usual summer-time foes.
"We're actually pretty excited to get to play them," Gordon said. "There's a connection with them because we go to team camp and they're there, and they're a great team, too. It's gonna be fun.
"I'm just proud of them," Gordon added. "It's just the icing on the cake from now on."
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/onalaska-advances-state-semis-first-191800768.html
