The Rainier volleyball team came up one set short of sweeping two matches against Toutle Lake last week, settling for a split.
The Mountaineers first hosted the Ducks in a non-league matchup on Tuesday, Sept. 30, knocking off the road team 3-2 (21-25, 27-25, 27-25, 19-25, 15-12). Neither team, in any of the five sets, led by more than eight points in the tightly contested match.
“It was great that the girls stuck with it the whole match and didn’t give up. They pushed through to get the win,” head coach Carrie Ooms said. “It was definitely hard for us, but I’m glad we stuck with it and came through in the end.”
Junior Brooklynn Swenson and senior Lilly Johnson were each 100% at the serving line, and Swenson led the team with 15 assists. Junior Acacia Murphy logged 17 kills while freshman Allyson Ooms recorded 12. Senior Olivia Earsley led a strong defensive effort from the Mountaineers with 23 digs.
On Thursday, Sept. 28, Rainier appeared primed to start Central 2B League play with a win and capture a sweep over Toutle Lake. But after the Mountaineers secured the first two sets in the road matchup, the Ducks rallied to take the final three sets.
“We played really well but lost our steam after the second set, and we couldn’t seem to recover,” Carrie Ooms said.
Swenson put forth another fine performance despite the loss, dishing out 17 assists. Murphy and Allyson Ooms each recorded 13 kills.
On defense, Earsley was stout with 32 digs. Murphy and sophomore Anika Plowman combined for 17 blocks.
The Mountaineers (5-3, 0-1 C2BL) also faced Toledo High School in a home conference match on Tuesday, Oct. 3. Results were not available as of press time.
Rainier next faces Wahkiakum in another home conference match on Thursday, Oct. 5 at 7 p.m.
