Third-seeded Graham-Kapowsin tops Emerald Ridge, claims 4A SPSL tournament volleyball title
With a districts berth already locked up, Graham-Kapowsin played with a palpable exuberance on Saturday afternoon – and the joyful energy and excitement worked like a charm.
The third-seeded Eagles (13-3, 6-2 4A SPSL) defeated the fourth-seeded Emerald Ridge Jaguars, 25-18, 25-17, 23-25, 21-25, 15-9, to claim the 4A SPSL tournament title at Emerald Ridge High School after upsetting No. 2 seed Puyallup in the semifinals.
“These girls have worked so hard,” said an emotional head coach Loni Parks after the match. “We are young and we are just an intense group, and I’m excited, happy and proud of them.”
Graham-Kapowsin jumped out to a commanding 2-0 game lead after a furious rally in the second set. Trailing 17-15, the Eagles went on a 10-0 run fueled by the heady play of 14-year-old freshman Hailey Brockway. The outside hitter collected eight kills in the momentum-swinging run, blasting shots all over the court.
“When me and my setter ran quick sets, they couldn’t get there and then I could just swing at it – and then if they were there, I’d just tip it,” Brockway said. “So it was just pretty much me and my setter, when we worked together it was working.”
Brockway, a blend of power and quickness that belies her age, took charge again in the fifth and final set. She opened the set with a kill by powering the ball over the right side of the net, making clean contact with the head of Emerald Ridge captain and outside hitter Ella Litterell. Luckily Litterell was unhurt and laughed it off, but the tone had been set for the Eagles.
Having a freshman who can play like a senior is no small thing, Parks pointed out. MVP chants for Brockway rang out in the celebratory postgame huddle.
“She is our big teddy bear,” Parks said. “She is the nicest, hardest-working kid, but you know what, she gets along with this team so well and these girls just love her. They get excited at every record she breaks, they just are triumphant for her. To have her as a leadership role – yeah, she can hit the ball hard!”
Emerald Ridge didn’t go down without a fight. Led by Litterell and Malelega Bartley, the Jaguars found their footing to force the deciding fifth set. But when the Eagles swarmed to a 6-0 advantage early in the set, it was too big of a hole to dig out of.
“That’s the SPSL in a nutshell,” Parks said. “Look at today, you’ve got a 3-4 (seeds) playing for a first-second. Every team in this league is awesome, every team in this league could beat anyone at any given time, so the fact that we won in such a powerful, dominating league is just amazing. It’s a roller-coaster ride. You just gotta weather the storm and come out on top.”
The young Eagles will head next to the West Central District 3/Southwest District 4 tournament on Nov. 15th. After that, of course, could be a trip to the SunDome in Yakima for state. Their coach wasn’t ready to look too far down the road just yet, however.
“I don’t know what’s next, that’s the best part,” Parks said. “They keep amazing me and surpassing my expectations every single day. They are the hardest-working team I’ve probably ever coached ... Their chemistry is undeniable, they are best friends and they deserve every minute of it. I don’t know where we’re going to be, but it’s going to be somewhere great.”