Mules headed to state volleyball

The Wahkiakum Mule volleyball team is headed to Yakima today for the State B Volleyball tournament. They begin play against Colfax at 9:45 a.m. on Friday in a double elimination bracket format.

Last Wednesday, the Lady Mules beat Northwest Christian and Friday Harbor in two loser out matches at district to secure a spot at the state tournament. On Saturday, they traveled to Raymond to finish district play and determine their berth at state. After a morning loss to Napavine, they lost a coin toss with Onalaska and settled for sixth place in district.

On Wednesday against Northwest Christian, the Lady Mules won in four sets, 24-26, 25-14, 25-19, and 25-20.

"We started a bit slow, but were able to work back into our groove," Coach Kayli Hurley said. "Standouts were Peyton Souvenir with 32 assists, 13 digs and eight kills; Makenzie Anderson, with eight kills; Kennedi LaBerge and Grace Peacock who pitched in seven kills apiece; Macie Elliott put up five kills; Savannah Burdick put up 18 digs and was 100 percent from the service line."

The Lady Mules then faced Friday Harbor and won in three, 25-23, 25-14, and 25-23.

"This match was a great overall performance with both sides of our game being very efficient," Hurley said.

She singled out Peacock, who had 10 kills and three aces; Souvenir, who had 31 assists; Anderson who had eight kills and seven digs; and LaBerge, who had seven kills.

"Tyra Elliott made some great defensive plays covering our vulnerable spots and was very efficient on serve receive," Hurley said.

She took a moment to acknowledge the bench.

"All year, our bench has been a vital part of our momentum, energy, and ultimate success," Hurley said. The contribution from them tonight was priceless."

On Saturday, the Lady Mules faced Napavine.

The Tigers, behind some great hitting by sophomore Mollie Olson, beat the Mules in three, 21-25, 17-25, and 21-25.

"We did some good things overall and led for most of the first two sets," Hurley said. "We just didn't find a way to close them out."

Standouts were M. Elliott, who had seven kills; Anderson, who had 11 kills; and Burdick with a 2.47 serve receive out of a possible 3.0.

"We were much more efficient from the service line as Peyton Souvenir, Kennedi LaBerge, Savannah Burdick, and Grace Peacock were at 100 percent," Hurley said.