Bulldog netters finish fifth in state

Colfax collects the fifth-place trophy after again defeating Wilbur/Creston at the SunDome in Yakima. Seniors in the front row from left are Taylor Garcia, Lexie Smith, Parker Warwick and Sarah Kraut.

After the quest for a fourth straight state volleyball title was derailed Friday night at Yakima by a feisty Mossyrock Viking team, Colfax Bulldogs came back to win the last two matches to finish up in fifth place. The last two foes were NE league entrants Davenport and Wilbur/Creston.

Coach Sue Doering checks strategy against Davenport with Skylre Sakamoto-Howell, Lexie Smith and Taylor Garcia (from the left) in the front row.

Coach Sue Doering credited her crew with fighting back to capture a state trophy. Prior to the second-round loss to Mossyrock, Colfax had rolled through 21 straight state tournaments with finishes of fourth or better.

That meant when Colfax went up against Davenport at the SunDome Saturday morning, they were in a state loser-out game for the first time in 21 years.

"I think we showed a lot of resiliency to put it back together," Doering said.

The loss to Mossyrock in the quarter-final match proved to be a jolt when it ended.

"We weren't firing on all cylinders in the first game, but we came back and it really could have gone the other way," Coach Doering commented.

The Viking girls took the first game 25-20, and Colfax came back to take the next two, 25-19 and 25-19 again. Colfax had the lead most of the way in the fourth game, but Mossyrock came back to tie it at 20-20. They then notched a 24-21 lead and finished it at 25-21.

That locked the match at 2-2 and sent it into a fifth game. Colfax stacked a 6-2 lead, but Mossyrock again came back to tie it at 12-12 with an ace, went to 14-13 on a missed Colfax serve and then won on an out-of-bounds shot.

Mossyrock went on to drop Napavine 3-1 in the semi-final round and then lost a five-game battle to Kalama in the championship game.

A team which had dropped down from the A division, Kalama was one of the power teams expected to make a title run before the tourney started.

Doering noted Colfax could have matched up well against the K club because of the Bulldogs' blocking power.

Colfax Saturday stayed in the trophy hunt with a three-game win over Davenport. The Gorillas had earned their state ticket by upsetting Liberty last week at St. George's.

Colfax stopped the Gorillas 25-17 25-17 25-11.

Carmen Gfeller hit 17 kills against the Gorillas and served 20-23. JoJo Stolle hit 13-13 kills in the elimination match win.

Northwest Christian, the fourth NE team with a state ticket, was bumped after two rounds on losses to Dayton and Toutle Lake.

Colfax then faced Wilbur/Creston, the NE north side champs who tested Colfax over five games last week in the NE title match at St. George's.

The Wildcats again fought Colfax in the first two games, but they faded in the last game. Line score for the season's final match win for the Bulldogs was 25-20 25-23 and 25-15.

The two NE foes went to 22-22 in the second game before Piper Cai served out the last three points for the Bulldogs. In the last game, Gfeller served Colfax to a 7-3 lead. Stolle and Abbie Miller put together serve strings, and the Wildcats never bounced back.

At the start of the tourney run Friday, Colfax took out Life Christian of Tacoma 27-25 25-23 and 25-13.

Colfax was in a 10-17 hole in the first game, and Stolle went to the line for 10 straight points. She hit two aces, Cai hit a block and Gfeller had three kills in the run.

Miller put together two serve strings in the second game and had a six-point run in the third game.

Colfax finished the year with a 30-5 record. Their lone loss to a 2B foe was the five-game loss to Mossyrock in the quarter-final.

Colfax will graduate four seniors and also start next year without Stolle, the German exchange student who was a big factor in the Colfax run this year. Grads off the team will be Taylor Garcia, Lexie Smith and Parker Warwick.

The Bulldogs will return a lot of talent with Gfeller, Cai, Miller and Greta Geier all back as seniors and Kylie Kackman, Madi Cox and Rachel Brown expected back as juniors.

Stats vs. Life Christian: Miller 19-19 serving with 4 aces, 11 digs; Kackman 7-8 serving, 23 assists, 2 digs; Garcia 10-12 serving with ace, 3 digs, 3 kills, 3 blocks; Gfeller 10-10 serving, 1 dig, 18 kills, 5 blocks; Stolle 18-20 serving, 1 kill, 2 blocks, 5 digs; Cai 7-7 serving, 5 kills, 2 blocks, 3 digs; Cox 5 digs; Geier 6 kills, 2 blocks, 1 dig; Brown 1 dig.

Stats vs. Mossyrock: Miller 9-10 serving with ace, 1 kill, 14 digs; Kackman 21-21 serving, 2 blocks, 23 assists, 16 digs; Garcia 3-4 serving, 3 kills, 2 blocks, 2 digs; Gfeller 17-19 serving, 23 kills, 6 blocks, 17 digs; Stolle 13-14 serving with 3 aces, 3 kills, 5 blocks, 43 digs; Cox 5-5 serving, 9 digs; Cai 16-18 serving, 13 kills, 3 blocks, 26 digs; Brown 1-1 serving, 2 digs; Smith 12-14 serving, 1 dig; Geier 3 kills, 6 blocks.

Stats vs. Davenport: Miller 10-10 serving with ace, 5 digs; Kackman 6-10 serving with two aces, 23 assists, 6 digs; Gfeller 20-23 serving with 7 aces, 17 kills, 9 digs; Stolle 13-13 serving with 2 aces, 4 kills, 5 digs; Cai 7-8 serving, 13 kills, 3 digs; Garcia 1 kill; Geier 1 kill, 1 block; Smith 4-6 serving with 2 aces; Brown 2 kills, 1 block, 1 dig; Warwick 4-4 serving, Sarah Kraut 2-2 serving with ace.

Stats vs. Wilbur/Creston: Miller 15-16 serving, 6 digs; Kackman 11-11 serving, 19 assists, 7 digs; Garcia 1 kill; Gfeller 15-16 serving with 5 aces, 20 kills, 1 block, 9 digs; Stolle 4-9 serving, 4 kills, 2 blocks; Cox 3 digs; Geier 2 kills, l block; Cai 8-8 serving, 10 kills, 1 block, 8 digs; Smith 3-3 serving, 1 dig; Warwick 8-10 serving, 1 dig.