Yellow Pages
YAKIMA — The La Conner volleyball team got what may have been an unexpected gift in its first-round match Friday at the Class 2B state tournament: a third-game loss.
The Braves beat Northwest Christian of Lacey in four games 25-20, 25-16, 28-30, 25-16 to advance to their expected — and highly anticipated — second-round match with Colfax at 10:30 a.m. Saturday.
The third-game loss, and the subsequent win in the fourth game, showed how resilient the Braves can be, coach Suzanne Marble said.
“That’s what I like — when you lose a set and are able to win the next one. They showed a lot of composure,” she said.
Marble said Priscilla Ponce-Venagas, a sophomore, played well for the Braves. Ponce-Venagas was 22-of-22 in serve-receive with four aces, five kills and 11 digs.
“That’s a lot of pressure for a sophomore but she did a nice job for us today,” Marble said.
Julie Hulbert had 24 kills, three blocks and 17 digs, Abi Hedlund had five aces and seven kills and Candice Pedroza had 47 assists.
Marble said Emily Anderson played well in the middle for the Braves.
The matchup between La Conner and Colfax features teams who between them have won the past three Class 2B state championships. The Braves won in 2006 and 2007, and Colfax won last year’s title.
“It’s going to be a battle. It’s no walk in the park by any means,” Marble said.
