High school volleyball preview: Top teams, players in South Sound in 2022
The high school volleyball season is underway in Washington and here in the South Sound. Here are the top teams and players to watch this fall.
4A SPSL
With a stacked roster and admittedly cheesy family dynamic, Curtis stormed to the 4A title game last season, falling to Bothell in three sets.
It was a “shock” to be in last year’s championship match, said coach Taylor Bautista, now entering her fourth season at the helm of the Curtis program. It was a new experience for everyone, one they perhaps didn’t expect by simply taking their schedule “one game at a time.”
“Coming into (this) season, we have some more confidence,” Bautista said. “And even though we’re still really young, I feel like we believe in ourselves, and we trust ourselves.
“We know what we have to do, and how much work it’s going to take.”
There’s no shortage of talent on this year’s squad, which hopes to avenge its state-title defeat. Outside hitter Ella Ensign returns as the reigning league co-MVP, posting 450 kills, 48 aces, and 310 digs prior to last year’s state tournament. Her younger sister, Peyton, took the league by storm in 2021 as a freshman setter, garnering first-team all-league recognition.
“(Peyton) has her sister to kind of guide her,” Bautista said. “So I think their relationship on the team is super helpful. She has someone a little bit older, a little bit more experienced as far as high school volleyball goes, that she can look up to.”
Tatyana Tauese joins the Ensign sisters as Curtis’ senior libero, also a reigning first-teamer. And the Vikings get right-side hitter Ari Medchill back, plus outside hitter Kelsey Richards – both second-teamers in 2021.
Rudi Reyes, a first-team middle blocker last season, was the team’s only senior graduate from its runner-up squad.
“We were one big family,” Bautista said. “And the girls that were not necessarily playing on the court contributed just as much as the girls on the court.
“I don’t know if people know this, but our bench got the sportsmanship award one time. Our bench was something that people honestly talked about sometimes more than the girls on the court, because of how much energy they had, and how much they contributed. … Luckily we have, basically, the same group.”
The Vikings haven’t slowed down in 2022, posting five straight wins to begin the campaign. Two came over 4A SPSL South opponents: Olympia (Sept. 12) and Rogers (Sept. 14).
Puyallup (6-0, 3-0) could challenge in a competitive SPSL North division, returning middle blocker Danielle Brown, Ensign’s co-MVP.
Reese and Sophia Sheppard are Puyallup’s first-team sister duo – coincidentally similar to Ensign and the Vikings in University Place. Ivy Vindivich, a South Dakota School of Mines & Technology commit, provides additional power on the outside, posting 365 kills and 37 aces for Puyallup in 2021.
And Puyallup hosts Curtis on Sept. 20, setting up what could be a preview between state-title contenders.
“Oh, we’re fired up,” Bautista said. “Puyallup has always been Curtis’ rival, so it’s really exciting to play against them. They’re such a competitive team.
“And from what we know, they have a very similar team to last year. They were one of our most competitive matches.”
Graham-Kapowsin (5-0, 2-0) returns two-time TNT All-Area Player of the Year Hailey Brockway, an Illinois State commit who posted a state-best 582 kills and 6.5 kills per set in 2021. They’re the favorites in the 4A SPSL South.
Emerald Ridge’s (4-1, 2-1 SPSL South) season began with four straight wins, before a shutout loss to Puyallup on Sept. 15. First-team outside hitter Grace Wesenberg helped the Jaguars to victory in last year’s league tournament, posting 331 kills, 160 digs, and 41 aces in 2021.
4A NPSL
Mount Rainier rolled to a sixth-place finish in last year’s 4A state tournament, and with four returning all-league players, expectations remain for the Rams to return.
Outside hitter Celia Dowell and setter Alyna Brown are Mount Rainier’s first-team senior captains; meanwhile, a pair of second-teamers return for sophomore seasons in Alani Taliloa and Manaia Alefaio Foifua.
“We were just peaking at the right time,” coach Pat Taitano said of last year’s run. “This year, there’s a lot of good teams out there.
“Again… we’re gonna have to be that kind of team that just keeps getting better, and peaks at the right time.”
Mount Rainier announced its contention for a state title with a win at last weekend’s AMHS Volleyball Classic at Auburn Mountainview, outlasting 15 other programs. They beat fellow-contender Graham-Kapowsin head-to-head, which finished third in state last year and features Brockway.
Dowell is Mount Rainier’s floor captain, possessing excellent placement and court vision. Brown is the smart, “crafty” setter for the Rams, Taitano said.
Watch for Kennedy Catholic to make a run at a league title and beyond, returning second-team setter Dani Turcincec and middle blocker Jojo Southwell. Outside hitter Nya Crump, now a senior, was a league honorable mention in 2021.
“I know a lot of them, because I coach a lot of them in clubs,” Taitano said. “They’re a well-coached team.
“They’re kind of like a mirror image of us. They have really good defense, good ball control, and just enough offense to be dangerous, so you can’t really take them lightly.”
3A NPSL
Auburn Riverside coach Michael Tienda considers Sophie Danielson “a leader, both on and off the court.” A junior middle blocker, Danielson snagged second-team honors in last season’s NPSL.
Jaelyn Moevea, a senior, returns in 2022 as a middle blocker. League honorable mentions Bryanna Dodson and Madison Turner are another pair of Raven returnees. And there’s a real chance that after a fourth-place finish in last year’s state tournament, Auburn Riverside could again be one of the scarier teams come playoff time.
Danielson is primed to lead the Ravens in kills this season, Tienda said. League-rival Kentlake could pose a threat, returning a pair of seniors and reigning first-teamers – setters Hailey Edwards and Noelle Soepardi.
Auburn is led by libero Feliyah Azur, a first-teamer in 2021.
3A SSC
Peninsula was perfect in league play last season, losing only to Mead in the 3A state title game. The runner-ups graduated three-first teamers, but reigning league MVP Langley Griffin is back.
The Seahawks resume league play on Sept. 20 with Central Kitsap, hopeful for consecutive 3A SSC titles.
Griffin logged 274 kills, 80 aces, 41 blocks, and 235 for the Seahawks last season, and posted a season-high 26 kills in Peninsula’s state-championship loss to Mead last Nov. 19.
“Her ability to slice through the ball makes it a challenge for defenders to dig, and her powerful jump-serve is counted on every match for more than a handful of points,” coach Katrina Cardinal told The News Tribune last fall.
North Thurston could challenge in a competitive 3A SSC, led by first-team outside hitter Alexis Meyer. Returning for a junior season, Meyer posted 120 kills, 65 assists, 180 digs, and 40 blocks as a sophomore.
She’s joined by senior libero McKenzie Uyehara, a second-teamer in 2021 who logged 205 digs and 30 aces.
3A PCL
Silas ran through opponents en route to a 12-1 league record in 2021, and this season, they’re the favorites again.
Perhaps the 3A PCL’s most dangerous outside hitter is Rams senior Ivy Brown, a reigning first-teamer. She’s joined by junior setter Val Brandt and senior middle blocker Kyona Fox-Flores.
Bonney Lake was the only in-league team to topple Silas in 2021, needing all five sets last Oct. 12. They’re again a league-title contender, led by reigning 3A PCL Libero of the year Ella Hamry and middle hitter Emily Shaw.
Lincoln’s program rolled over three non-league opponents to kick off their season, posting shutouts over Central Kitsap (Sept. 6), Foss (Sept. 8), and River Ridge (Sept. 13).
2A SPSL
This loaded league sent four programs to the state tournament in 2021: Enumclaw, Steilacoom, Washington, and White River.
But of this season’s early slate, no team is off to a more-scalding start than White River, now 5-0 overall and 4-0 in league play. First with consecutive shutouts over Franklin Pierce and North Kitsap (Sept. 6-7), the Hornets buzzed past Washington in five sets on Sept. 9 and downed Steilacoom, 3-0, on Sept. 12.
Middle blocker Audrey Nicolls paces White River with 21 total blocks, and Audrey Berg’s 2.6 kills per set leads the group. Senior Kelli Kaelin was the league’s libero of the year in 2021.
Across town, Enumclaw remains only a game behind in the 2A SPSL standings (3-1) and returns reigning first-team outside hitter Macy Furtwangler. Washington outside hitter Sirena Peredo, a senior and two-time TNT All-Area selection, is the league’s other first-team returnee.
Steilacoom’s program features first-year head coach Becky Saravia, who hopes to implement a change in philosophy.
“This year is all about regrowth since our program graduated eight seniors,” she said. “We have a strong incoming freshman class and are looking forward to developing a strong program.”
2A EvCo
Tumwater was the league’s lone representative at last year’s state tournament, and a new coaching staff led by Molly Cichosz hopes to get them back.
They’re calling it a “year of transition,” with three alumni on the coaching staff striving to strengthen Tumwater’s volleyball tradition. But the T-Birds return a pair of first-teamers, including middle blocker Isabela Burney and libero Brooklynn Hayes.
Black Hills setter Alex Loveless was the league’s most valuable player in 2021, and she returns for a senior year. So does first-team middle blocker Payton Childers.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
OH Feliyah Azur, Auburn, sr.
OH Hailey Brockway, Graham-Kapowsin, sr.
S Alyna Brown, Mount Rainier, sr.
MB Danielle Brown, Puyallup, jr.
OH Ivy Brown, Silas, jr.
MB Isabela Burney, Tumwater, sr.
OH Hannah Byers, Olympia, jr.
MB Payton Childers, Black Hills, sr.
OH Sophie Danielson, Auburn Riverside, jr.
OH Celia Dowell, Mount Rainier, sr.
S Hailey Edwards, Kentlake, sr.
OH Ella Ensign, Curtis, sr.
S Peyton Ensign, Curtis, soph.
OH Macy Furtwangler, Enumclaw, sr.
OH Langley Griffin, Peninsula, sr.
L Ella Hamry, Bonney Lake, sr.
L Brooklynn Hayes, Tumwater, jr.
OH Bailey Johnson, Emerald Ridge, sr.
L Kelli Kaelin, White River, sr.
S Alex Loveless, Black Hills, sr.
OH Alexis Meyer, North Thurston, jr.
OH Sirena Peredo, Washington, sr.
OH Grace Peterson, Graham-Kapowsin, sr.
DS Noelle Soepardi, Kentlake, sr.
S Reese Sheppard, Puyallup, soph.
L Sophia Sheppard, Puyallup, sr.
MB Laney Sneva, North Thurston, sr.
L Tatyana Tauese, Curtis, sr.
OH Ivy Vindivich, Puyallup, sr.
OH Grace Wesenberg, Emerald Ridge, jr.
This story was originally published September 19, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
