Prep Sports Report: Sehome runners pull off team sweep at NWC cross country championships
Lil Desler doesn’t like to look back in a race, but the Sehome sophomore has much to look forward to.
The affable athlete who led the Mariners to their 13th girls state title in 25 years with third place as a freshman acknowledged she was “not expecting” to win the NWC cross country championship.
But she never looked back on her way to victory in 18 minutes and 7.6 seconds over the 5K (3.1 miles), 16-school run fest with 95 girls competing in and around Civic Stadium on Wednesday.
Just as gratified was Meridian junior Logan Ignacio, who ran 18:10.3 to top her career best by 31 seconds to claim second place.
Desler’s teammate, freshman Sloane Clines, was third in 18:16.2 to help top-ranked Sehome claim the team title with 27 points (low score wins), a huge margin over the rest of the field. Anacortes was second with 64, followed by Bellingham with 115, Meridian with 138 and Squalicum with 153.
In the boys race, Anacortes junior Dylan Rowell showed that he is an outstanding college prospect with a win in 15:12.6, followed by Lynden Christian junior Nickolas Luce in 15:41.2 and Sehome senior Nick Gargano in 15:43.2.
Gargano — who finished ninth at state 2A last year to help the top-ranked Mariners to their 12th team title in 25 years — led four teammates who finished in the top 11 to earn the league title by a large margin with 39 points (the top five runners score for each team). Anacortes was second with 83 points, followed by Bellingham with 93, Squalicum with 113 and Meridian with 123.
“This meet is always a big deal because our conference (with 1A, 2A and 3A teams) is so strong,” said Sehome coach Kevin Ryan, who served as meet director. The longtime coach was thrilled to see eight teams from Whatcom County finish in the top 10 boys and girls combined team scores.
“Everyone really pushes us and helps make us so much better,” Ryan said. “I think we had our 13 boys (Dylan Hill was recovering from an injury) all finish in the top 31.” That’s a mighty impressive number, since 128 boys ran.
The meet was not a state qualifier, so no one was mandated to run if he or she hoped to get healthier for the only state qualifier — the 1A, 2A and 3A district meets Saturday at the Deming Log Show Grounds (1A) and at Lakewood High (2A and 3A).
In the girls finals, Desler put on a classic kick after retaking the lead late in the race.
“”I don’t like to look back because I might slow down,” said Desler, who appropriately sparkled as much as the sparkly makeup on her cheeks. “No one seemed to want to take the early lead, so I decided to take it. I’m happy with how I ran today.”
Desler said she was more concerned about her team than her finish.
“If I had to choose, I would rather take second place (at state) with my personal best than win with a time that isn’t my best.”
Ignacio was ecstatic after shattering her personal best for the Trojans, who are ranked sixth in state 1A girls and seventh in boys.
“This is my best time ever. But I didn’t go into this race expecting to finish second,” Ignacio said with a huge grin. “I finished sixth in league and fourth last year. But I won’t be a zero next year.”
Nor does she want to be worse than fifth at 1A state, where she was 10th as a sophomore.
“Yes, my goal is top three, but I would be disappointed with anything lower than top five,” said Ignacio, who was named Logan in honor of her parents’ affection for Marvel Comics and Wolverine, who is named Logan.
In the boys race, Ryan said, “We had a conservative game plan and the guys fulfilled it. We didn’t want to go all out today with two big races coming right up. We had a real hard workout Monday (two days before the league finals).
‘That was my PR (personal record),” Luce said. “I trained pretty hard all through the summer.”
“I’m happy with my finish,” said Gargano of his third place. The two Nicks sportingly kidded each other about being two seconds apart but now not getting the chance to race against each other again.
NWC Championships
Boys
Winner and top 20 county runners: 1. Dylan Rowell (Ana) 15:12.6; 2. Nickolas Luce (LC) 15:41.2; 3. Nick Gargano (Se) 15:43.2; 4. Baynes Machinski (Bell) 15:51.3; 5. Berkeley Pass (Bell) 15:53.0; 6. Skyler Gillham (Se) 15:53.9; 9. Sebastien Vahid (Se) 16:06.0; 10. Heath Terry (Se) 16:04.1; 11. Aidan Batt (Se) 16:05.7; 12. Judson Berreth (Se) 16:08.4; 13. Reuben TeVelde (Mer) 16:14.1; 14. Ty Hoffman (Sq) 16:19.9; 15. Carter McGaffic (Se) 16:22.9; 16. Campbell Phillips (Se) 16:23.2; 20. Tyler Rush (Sq) 16:32.5.
Team scores: 1. Sehome 39, 2. Anacortes 81, 3. Bellingham 93, 4. Squalicum 113; 5. Meridian 123, 6/ Burlington-Edison 172, 7. Lynden Christian 207, 8. Lakewood 213, 9. Mount Vernon 253, 10. Sedro-Woolley 298, 11. Oak Harbor 308, 12. Lynden 311, 13. Mount Baker 333, 14. Ferndale 383, 15. Blaine 414.
Girls
Winner and top 20 county runners: 1. Lil Desler (Se) 18:07.6; 2. Logan Ignacio (Mer) 18:10.3; 3. Sloane Clines (Se) 18:16.2; 4. Sloan Dickson (Lyn) 18:28.9; 5. Zaya Smith (Bell) 18:32.4; 6. Samantha Knipp (Se) 18:38.8; 7. Sydney Harri (Se) 18:39.0; 10. Kjirsten Ludeman (Se) 19:20.2; 12. Abby Rush (Se) 19:30.5; 14. Alivia Hernandez (Se) 19:33.7; 18. Nora Alexander (Bell) 19:55.2; 20. Aven Bates (Se) 19:58.7.
Team scores: 1. Sehome 27, 2. Anacortes 64, 3. Bellingham 115; 4. Meridian 138; 5. Squalicum 153, 6. Mount Vernon 168, 7. Lynden 175, 8. Oak Harbor 205, 9. Burlington-Edison 210, 10. Sedro-Woolley 251, 11. Ferndale 264, 12. Lakewood 346.
JV Boys
Winner and top- 3 county runners: 1. Ezra Bubb (Se) 16:54.5; 2. Owen Mumley (Se) 17:11.6; 3. Jack Rybczyk 17:19.8. Team: 1. Sehome 18, 2. Squalicum, 4. Bellingham.
JV Girls
Winner and top 3 county runners: 1. Emily Pianetta (Ana) 21:17.0; 3. Makayla McBride (Se) 21:59.3. Team: 1. Sehome 25, 3. Bellingham, 5. Squalicum.
Girls Swimming
Previously unbeaten Sehome gave Bellingham its toughest challenge of the season, but the Bayhawks won 99-85 to earn their second consecutive NWC dual-meet title Three days later, on Friday, the Bayhawks beat Squalicum 113-55 to finish 18-0 over a two-season span.
The Bayhawks won all three relays and claimed nine of 12 events in all. .Individual double winners were Bellingham’s Grace Sorensen and Sehome’s Ella Ethelbah, who won the 500 free in 5:40.30 in a classic battle with Bellingham’s Peyton Acord, who was second in 5:44.60.
“Despite being down three swimmers, which limited our relays and our overall numbers against a much larger Sehome team, Bellingham won its second consecutive title with a gutty, whole team effort,” said Bayhawks coach Matthew Buckmaster. “We had multiple swimmers in new, challenging events.”
Sehome finished 8-1 in team matches with a 94-89 win over Anacortes sparked by double winners Ethelbah and Priyanka Costanzo.
Bellingham 99, Sehome 85/ Winners: 200 medley relay: Bellingham (Hayes, Acord, Sorensen, J. Wilson) 2:02.68; 200 free -- Elsa Ethel bah (S) 2:07.60; 200 free -- Grace Sorensen (B) 2:18.7; 50 free: June Wilson (B) 27.82; 1-meter diving: Laura Webb (S) 151 points; 100 fly: Sorensen (B) 1:01.48; 100 free: Annika Holland (B) 1:01.54; 500 free -- Ethel bah (S) 5:40.30; 200 free relay: Bellingham (I. Wilson, Garcia, J., Wilson, Holland) 1:56.67; 100 back: Addy Hayes (B) 1:14.31; 100 breast -- Peyton Acord (B) 1:20.36; 400 free relay: Bellingham (Holland, Hayes, Sorensen, Acord) 4:07.28.
Bellingham 113, Squalicum 55. Winners (Blaine and Mount Baker also had several swimmers(). 200 medley relay: Bellingham (Hayes, Acord, Sorensen, Garcia) 2:03.83; 200 free: Annika Holland (Bell) 2:20.32; 200 IM -- Hailey Ferrell (Bl) 2:28.84; 50 free -- Addy Hayes (Bell) 29.34; 1-meter diving: Madline Fredette 138.35 points; 100 fly -- Grace Sorensen (Bell) 1:00.30; 100 free -- Kate Truemper (Sq) 1:07.31; 500 free -- Ferrell 5:53.98; 200 free relay: Bellingham (I. Wilson, Sorensen, Sherrer, Hollland) 2:03.83; 100 back: Jasmine Garcia (Bell) 1:14.34; 100 breast: Peyton Acord (Bell) 1:03.32; 400 free relay: Bellingham (Garcia, Holland, Sorensen, Acord) 4:04.11.
Mount Vernon 94, Lynden 71. Lynden winners: 200 medley relay: Lynden (Bredeson, Nelson, Morris, Fleming-Butela) 2:22.31; 200 IM -- Ella Brede son 2:48.82; 100 fly: Kaitlyn Morris 1:17.39; 500 free: Joci Hall 7:39.75; 100 breast : Bredeson 1:13.58.
Anacortes 114, Squalicum 34, Blaine 21. County winners: 50 free -- Hailey Ferrell (Bl) 27.32;’ 100 back -- Ferrell 1:04.26.
Sehome 94, Anacortes 89. Sehome winners: 200 free: Ella Ethelbah 2:15.03; 200 IM: Priyanka Costanzo 2:35.06; 50 free: Taylor Tellefson 29.20; 1-meter diving: Laura Webb 142.50 points; 100 free: Sage Maden 1:04.32; 500 free: Ethelbah 5:56.38; 100 breast: Costanzo 1:19.19; 400 free relay: Sehome (Hicks, Maden, Costanzo, Ethelbah) 4:45.14.
Ferndale 72, Burlington-Edison 69, Meridian 24. County winners: 200 medley relay: Ferndale (Brown, Esparza, Sande, Burns) 2:41.91; 200 IM: Natalie Nunez (M) 3:10.24; 50 free: Emma Sande (F) 1:33.55; 100 fly -- Nunez 1:28.43; 100 back: Alyanna Brownj (F) 1:28.12; 100 breast -- Cara Esparza (F) 1:34.58.
Mount Vernon 116, Squalicum 49, Blaine 24, Mount Baker 7. County winners: 200 medley relay: Squalicum (Truemper, Warolin, Ravitsky, Molina) 2:24.34; 200 IM -- Hailey Ferrell (B) 2:22.53; 50 free: Mars Molina (S) 29.50; 500 free: Ferrell 5:42.50.
Boys tennis
Bellingham senior Jacob Kuhn, the top seed, won his first 2A District title with a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Sehome’s Zach Chai on Wednesday at Bellingham.
The win will send Kuhn — who went 11-0 in dual match singles and 4-0 in the tournament, both without losing a game — to his second state tournament appearance in May. After a district bye, he went 24-8 in his combined scores.
“One hundred percent. I felt a lot of pressure to win this tournament, coming in unbeaten,” said Kuhn, who plans to obtain his Registered Nurse certification at Whatcom Community College and thus plans to end his tennis career at Bellingham.
“If someone had told me when I was a freshman that I would someday be district champion. I would have been surprised,” Kuhn said.
Bellingham coach Steve Chronister has frequently praised Kuhn for his work ethic.
“This is an outstanding accomplishment for Jacob,” Chronister said. “For a few years now, he has dedicated himself to improving. … Not only does he practice a great deal, but he studies the game and practices the right things against the best players he can find.
“Jacob does something many athletes are hesitant to do., He purposely identifies his weaknesses, and works on them until they become a strength.”
Kuhn said that playing on the team that won Chronister’s 1,000th dual match in 45 years and 77 boys and girls teams was also a great highlight.
Sehome junior Harley Kaiser beat senior teammate Zach Chai 5-7, 7-6, 6-1 Thursday for the district’s second state spot. Kaiser came back with three consecutive wins after losing to Chai in the semifinals.
Kuhn was masterful with all his strokes while winning in the semifinals over Alex Tull of Anacortes 6-0, 6-0. In the other semifinal, Chai beat Kaiser 6-3, 6-2.
In doubles, Sehome’s Christian Leon and Sean Lane beat Burlington’s Hudson Baker and Michael Hoagland. 6-3, 6-1, for the second state spot.
Burlington’s Spencer Betz and Kounosuke Wilcox gained the first state spot with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Leon and Lane.
Singles Quarterfinals
Jacob Kuhn (Bell) d. Dayton Lewis (Lake Washington) 6-0, 6-2; Alex Tull (Ana) d. Ethan Oscarson (Squal) 7-6, 7-5; Zach Chai (Se) d. Justin Barras (Se) 6-1, 6-2; Harley Kaiser (Se) d. Aaron Minter (Bell) 6-0, 6-1.
Singles Consolation
Oscarson d. Lewis 6-2, 6-1; Barras d. Minter 2-6, 6-3, 6-3; Barras d. Tull 6-2, 7-5; Kaiser d. Oscarson 7-5, 6-1; Kaiser d. Barras 7-5, 6-1;
Doubles quarterfinals
County players: Hong/Van Egdom (Ana) d. Imbach/Lyon (Bell) 7-5, 1-6, 6-3; Baker/Hoagland (B-E) d. Lee/Kuzin (Se) 6-1, 6-2; Lane/Leon (Se) d. Baker/Hoagland (B-E) 6-1, 6-4.
Doubles Round of 16
County players: Swapp/Metcalf (Ana) d. Trinh/Le (Squal) 6-0, 6-1; Hong/Van Egdom (Ana) d. Whitmore/Leon (Bell) 6-4, 6-1; Imbach/Lyon (Bell) d. Dedrick/Tedford (LW) 6-0, 6-0; Baker/Hoagland (B-E) d. Daughters/Legoe (Squal) 6-0, 6-2; Lee/Kuzin (Se) d. Baker/Hoagland (B-E) 6-1, 6-2; L. Kuhn/Hinder man (Bell) d. Friesen/Croc heron (Se) 6-1, 6-2; Lane/Leon (Se) d. Rhea/Watkins (ZB-E) 6-0, 3-6, 10-5.
Doubles Round of 32
County players: Lewark/Hunyh (ATM) d.l Le/Slind (Squal) 6-7, 6--4, 11-9; Trinh/Le (Squal) d. VanKooten/Hurley (Lyn) 3-6, 6-1, 12-10; Whitmore//Bloom (Bell) d. Van Kooten/Namminga (Lyn) 6-2, 3-6, 10-7; Daughters/Legoe (Squal) d. Bode/Van Dyk (Lyn) 3-6, 6-1, 10-6; Kriesen/Crocheron (Se) d./ Russell/Tong (ATM) 6-3, 7-6. Several county players had byes.
Girls Soccer
Lynden had one of its most special weeks in the program’s history to claim the first league title for the current seniors and the first unbeaten girls league season in school history, plus a school scoring record by senior Evelyn Saldivar.
Saldivar assisted on an early goal by sophomore Kyleigh McVie and the Lions held on for a 1-0 win over Lynden Christian on Tuesday in the14th round for their 11th shutout of a special season.
Two days later, county scoring leader Saldivar then scored two goals to set a school season record with 22 and the Lions (14-0-1 NWC, 15-0-1 overall) made her historic scores hold up for a 2-1 win over 3A No. 5 ranked Oak Harbor (12-3, 13-3) in the 15th and final round.
“She was tough and determined and determined,” Saldivar said of McVie, who scored her first game-winning goal for the varsity.
“Saldivar’s second goal came with about five minutes to play,” said Lions coach Clark Bourgault. “This was the school’s first unbeaten league season for the girls.
The winning score broke the school record of 21 goals, set last year by Mallory Villars.
Bourgault invited the community to “come on out and show some love to our girls” when they open 2A district play at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 31, at Ferndale High against a play-in survivor.
Longtime LC coach Brent DeRuyter said he was proud of how competitive his team was against the Lions.
“This was unbelievable,” he said. “Most 1A teams never get to see a team like Lynden.”
DeRuyter praised sophomore Gracelyn Russell for the way she shadowed Saldivar, who has a goal or an assist in every game.
LC (7-7-1, 9-7-1), the top seed for the NWC 1A district tournament, followed with a 2-1 loss to Burlington-Edison (7-7-1, 8-7-1) on Thursday. Kayla Yun scored her 10th goal for the Lyncs, according to the list of league leaders posted on Whatcom Preps by county historian Tyler Anderson. LC opens district play Wednesday, Oct. 30, at Blaine at 7:30 p.m. against fourth-seeded Nooksack Valley, a 2-1 winner over Mount Baker in a play-in district opener Saturday night, with scoring not immediately available.
In other final round action, freshman Liv Luna scored two goals and Hannah Waslohn scored her seventh to lift Ferndale (7-6-2, 8-6-2) to a 3-0 win over Lakewood. Bellingham (13-2, 14-2) also earned a shutout, 6-0 over Blaine (3-12, 4-12) as sophomore Stella Eltrich scored two goals and Ella Morrow, Ivy Newell, Beckett Ferry and Zoe Burke had one each. Newell has 13 goals and Morrow has nine, while Ferry has eight.
Sehome’s Kylie Ivcevic scored her ninth goal, assisted by Triya Mitchell, and Squalicum’s Ava Simmons hit the net to produce a 1-1 tie between the Mariners (11-1-3, 11-2-3) and the Storm (9-5-1, 9-5-1). Meridian (3-11-1, 4-11-1) fell to Anacortes 4-1 as Makayla Tolsma scored for the Trojans.
Nooksack Valley (2-12-1, 3-15-1) fell 5-0 to Sedro-Woolley (8-6-1) and Mount Baker (1-13-1, 1-15-1) lost 8-0 to Mount Vernon (8-7,. 9-7).
In other Round 14 games, Mount Baker celebrated its first win, 2-1 over Lakewood, as Abby Washburn scored with about three minutes left. Nadia Villanuever-Major scored Baker’s first goal. Mackenzie Flores and Tyla Olson had assists.
Ferndale topped Blaine 2-1 as Kasie O’Neill and Jorie McClellan scored for the Golden Eagles and Kate Koreski hit the mark for Blaine.
Sehome defeated Nooksack Valley 6-0, one day after the Pioneers played a 0-0 tie with Ferndale in a makeup game. Ayla Woodworth had two goals for the Mariners and Vivian Moss, Alexis Maldonado, Kate Schroeder and Mitchell scored one apiece. Keira Reeves assisted on two goals and Kaila Reeves and Mitchell had one assist apiece.
Squalicum shut out Meridian 3-0 with goals by Addisyn Wilson, Simmons and Hannah Bates scored.
In District 1 2A openers, No. 1 seed Lynden will play No. 8 Lakewood or Marysville-Pilchuck at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 31 at Ferndale High. On the same day, Western Washington’s Harrington Field will host No. 6 Anacortes vs. No. 3 Sehome at 4 p.m. and No. 7 Burlington vs. No. 2 at 6 p.m. Archbishop Murphy will also host a 6 p.m. opening game the same day between the No. 4 and 5 teams, to be determined.
Games will resume Nov. 2 at Civic Stadium.
In District 1 1A at Blaine High on Wednesday, Oct. 30, Blaine will meet Meridian at 5:30 p.m. and Lynden Christian will face Nooksack Valley at 7:30. Games will resume Nov. 2 at Blaine.
Volleyball
In Rounds 12 and 13 of the 15-match season, Lynden (13-1, 13-2) won twice to remain in contention for the second seed behind Burlington-Edison (13-0, 14-1) at the district tournament in November. The Lions also won an usual Saturday league match at Anacortes 25-18, 25-18, 25-13 to begin Round 14. The final two rounds of the league season will be completed for every team this week.
On Tuesday, Lynden beat Lynden Christian 25-17, 23-25, 25-12, 25-18 as Finley Parcher had 13 kills and 15 digs while Ryan Stephan logged 22 digs, Izzie Stephan had 32 assists, Reese Nyhoff served five aces and sophomore Lexi Hermanutz continued her late-season surge with 12 kills via .429 hitting and two blocks.
For LC, Tyra Dykstra had eight kills and eight digs and Danya Dykstra had five kills. Lyla Parriera had 12 digs and Lyla Parreira had five aces to go with 22 assists by Ella Fritts.
“Tonight was everything a crosstown rivalry should be,” first-year LC coach Dennis Janzen said. “A great crowd, loud and intense. Both teams played hard. We were a bit too inconsistent but overall we competed hard.”
Lions coach Chris Elsner was proud.of “how aggressive we were from the service line. It was a 100% great team effort. Lexi and Kam Hermanutz provided great leadership.”
“Our energy and competitiveness were our highlights,” said Lexi Hermanutz. “We came in ready and we were pretty much right there.”
In the third set against LC, the Lions scored the final 13 points, with nine on aggressive moves, after a 12-12 tie. Campbell DeJong scored the final two points with aces.
Two days later, the Lions dominated Oak Harbor 25-17, 25-13, 25-12. Parcher hit a remarkable .520 with 16 kills and 17 digs. Nyhoff had four aces and Izzie Stephan had 28 assists and five aces. Lexie Hermanutz had six kills while Rian Stephan had eight digs, eight kills and two blocks in a typically excellent effort.
Against Anacortes, Parcher was outstanding with 17 kills, three aces and three blocks, while libero Campbell DeJong had a remarkable 21 digs in a three-set match. Kamryn Hermanutz had 10 digs and hit .333 with nine kills. Rian Stephan contributed nine kills, four aces and 12 digs, while Nyhoff had five aces, Izzie Stephan made 38 assists and Lexi Hermanutz had eight kills on .400 hitting.
LC (7-7, 8-8) had the tough task of trying to come back in Round 13 against Burlington but the Tigers prevailed 25-15, 25-16, 25-19. Tyra Dykstra had seven kills while Etta DeJong and Josclyn Eshuis had five kills apiece. Parreira had 15 digs and Alli Wright had two blocks.
“B-E is a very good team,” Janzen said. “I was very pleased with how we competed. We can take positives from this match as we prepare for the postseason.”
In another Saturday match, the Lyncs fell to Lakewood 25-21, 23-25, 25-17, 25-22. Etta DeJong had six digs and eight kills, Jocelyn Eshuis made nine kills and 3.5 blocks to go with Wright’s three blocks., Ella Fritts had 32 assists, and Ellie Meyer had 15 digs along with Parreira’s 1 digs and Ellie’s Pierce’s 14 digs.
“I was pleased with our quick attack — the best of our season.” Janzen said. “We were just not consistent enough to win today.
In other Round 13 action, Blaine (2-11, 3-12) was rewarded for its season-long hustle with a 25-15, 23-25, 25-22, 17-25, 15-12 win over Bellingham (2-11, 2-12). Brie Smith had 34 assists and 13 digs, while Olivia Price had six kills and three blocks. Carly Saunders contributed five kills and six aces in support of Kaitlyn Harrington, who was everywhere with 21 digs, 16 kills and nine aces. Teia Dube was often excellent with 12 kills and 14 digs while Hannah Phelps-McDonald had 15 digs.
For Bellingham, Mary Lockhart had four aces, five blocks and seven kills, and Jayda Knutsen had seven digs and seven kills. Olivia Siemanosky had four blocks and seven kills and Ophelia Van Leeuwen and Bailey Buige each had 12 digs.
Sehome (11-2, 11-2) held onto third place with a 25-14, 25-20, 25-10 win over Squalicum (4-9, 4-10). Emmy Lee had five digs and 26 assists and Leah Lockwood produced five kills and five blocks and Maddie Behrends hit .500 with five kills. Hayden Niewiadomski led everyone with 16 kills and Bridgette Adams had 10 kills. Paige Flory contributed five aces and Makenna Andrews had 12 digs and three aces. For the Storm, Hannah Warner had eight kills and Bronwyn Jones made nine digs.
Meridian (9-4, 11-5) gained a 26-24, 25-15, 25-18 shutout over Anacortes (8-5, 9-5). Freshman standout Melanie Short posted 11 kills with .346 hitting and four aces, while Gracie Pap had eight kills and two blocks. Eden Bernardy had eight kills and Rylan Bernardy posted 16 digs and three aces. Grace Wells had 31 assists and Taya Benson had six kills.
Lakewood (9-4, 9-5) beat Ferndale (9-4, 9-6) 27-25, 25-18, 19-25, 15-7 despite a personal best of 25 kills by Lay Williams and 30 digs by Katrina Ferry, plus 22 digs by Olivia Copps. Brooklyn Larrabee was all over as usual with 38 assists, 18 digs, seven kills and six aces, and Kaylie Carver had 16 digs. Ferndale came back Saturday with a four-set win over Nooksack Valley 7-6, 8-7)
Nooksack Valley earlier powered to a 23-25, 25-20, 25-14, 25-15 win over Sedro-Woolley (3-10, 3-10) behind 12 kills, three blocks and two aces by Elizabeth DeLange and 35 assists and 15 digs by Peyton Bartl, plus five aces and nine digs by Annie Stremler and seven aces and seven digs by Karson Olney to go with seven kills and 11 digs by Gracie Rutgers.
Mount Vernon (4-9, 5-9) claimed a 25-16, 25-13, 25-18 win over Mount Baker (0-14, 0-15). Reace Brown hit .455 with five kills and two blocks for the Mountaineers, while Maddi Lewis had five kills and four digs and Cailyn Jewell blocked two shots. Mount Baker on Saturday fell to Sedro-Woolley in three sets.
In Round 12, Meridian beat Squalicum 25-16, 25-16, 25-20 as Scott, Pap and Benson all had seven kills to go with Eden Bernardy’s eight kills and Grace Wells’ 35 assists. Rylan Bernardy had 13 digs. For the Storm, Tiana Thompson hit ..556 with six kills to go with four blocks by Archer Burns and nine digs by Bronwyn Jones.
Meridian also had a non-league win over King’s 25-18, 25-21, 27-25. Eden Bernardy had 11 kills, 14 digs and two aces while Short had nine kills and 12 digs. Wells had 28 assists and Benson had two blocks.
Ferndale beat Blaine 23-25, 25-15, 25-15, 25-14 behind 32 assists, four aces and six kills by Brooklyn Larrabee, along with 13 kills from Lay Willaims, eight kills by Svetlana Baydak, 11 digs from Katrina Ferry and four aces apiece by Mariah Reyes and Caitlyn Berg. For Blaine, Harrington was productive as usual with 18 digs and eight kills, while Teia Dube had 14 kills and eight digs, Phelps-McDonald had nine digs, Saunders turned in nine digs and Brie Smith had eight digs and 19 assists.
Bellingham topped Mount Vernon 25-22, 25-14, 21-25, 23-25 with one of its best efforts. Jayla Knudsen had the winning kill, while Olivia Siemanowsky and Mary Lockhart had five blocks each. Sonama Smith was credited with 31 digs and 12 kills, five blocks and six aces in her top match, while Ophelia Van Leeuwen was credited with 41 digs and Sadie Hanley with 25 assists.
Sehome defeated Nooksack Valley 25-17, 25-16, 25-20 as Bridgette Adams had 11 kills, three aces and six digs and Leah Lockwood hit .400 with eight kills, Makenna Andrews had 16 digs, while Emmy Lee contributed 28 assists, Maddie Behrends had eight kills and Jillian Parfet served four aces. For Nooksack, Grace DeHoog had six digs and eight kills, Bartl had three aces and 16 assists, DeLang made 10 kills and Rutgers had 10 digs.
Lakewood beat Mount Baker 25-9, 25-11, 25-14. Gracie Zender and Kylee Bruland had 17 digs for Baker.
This story was originally published October 28, 2024 at 12:11 PM with the headline "Prep Sports Report: Sehome runners pull off team sweep at NWC cross country championships."
