Lady Braves split tough non-league net slate

The La Conner High volleyball team found a happy medium last week.

But there was no happy Meridian at Landy James Gymnasium.

That’s because the Lady Braves handed Meridian a straight-sets defeat before a large and supportive crowd on hand for La Conner’s home net opener.

La Conner defeated its 1A foe with a balanced attack and a quick, mobile defense that was stingy when it came to yielding points at the net.

State Player of the Week Heather Henriksen set the tone with another all-around performance. She finished with 12 digs and was perfect on 15 serves, two of which were aces.

Emma Christianson and Kumea Luna had big matches as well.

Christianson recorded six kills and two blocks at the net, and added 15 digs.

Luna chipped in six kills, three blocks and three aces.

Elizabeth Tripp closed out the match by serving up four whiffs.

“She really added a spark with her serving,” La Conner High head coach Suzanne Marble said afterward. “As a team, we delivered 94 percent of our serves, so I was really pleased with our focus.

“Our team played together,” added Marble, “and it was a great crowd and our high school section was great.”

As was La Conner’s effort on the court.

The line score pretty much tells the story. The Lady Braves completed their 3-0 sweep by comfortable margins of 25-17, 25-19, 25-13.

La Conner was equally solid later in the week opposite Anacortes, but dropped a hard-fought non-league match to the Lady Seahawks, whose campus numbers nearly 900 students.

The Lady Braves took the opening set 25-11 before falling 17-25, 14-25, and 11-25 the rest of the way.

“We came out focused and made very few if any unforced errors in the first set,” Marble said. “We completely took control, and the momentum was in our favor. We played relaxed and in control.”

It might’ve been the best display of volleyball thus far this season for a team that entered the Anacortes match undefeated, despite having played only larger enrollment opponents.

Unfortunately, it was a level of play that wasn’t sustainable against the bigger Anacortes squad.

“In the second set,” said Marble, “we came out having to play catch-up and could never regain the lead. This carried over into sets three and four. Anacortes just got better with each set, and their offense really took control.

“Our offense,” Marble said, “couldn’t put the ball away against them. But it was a great match for us as we prepare for our league season starting next week.”

Olivia Hedlund enjoyed a superb outing against the Lady Seahawks. She led La Conner with 21 assists. Christianson, Luna, and Ashley Watkins benefitted from Hedlund’s passing as they combined for 18 kills, seven by Christianson.

La Conner was at Darrington late Tuesday, and travels Sept. 30 to Friday Harbor.

In a related note:

• The La Conner High junior varsity team placed second in tournament play on Saturday.