State volleyball: Mt. Spokane swept in 3A title match by North Thurston

YAKIMA – In the end, there was no denying North Thurston its first state volleyball championship.

The top-seeded Rams swept No. 2 Mt. Spokane 25-21, 25-21, 25-20 on Saturday night in the Class 3A championship match inside the Yakima Valley SunDome.

Mt. Spokane kept pace in every set, but it was North Thurston’s ability to close that had them hoisting the final gold ball that was handed out over the past two weeks in Yakima.

“We had an incredible tournament and we peaked at the right time,” Mt. Spokane coach Darcy McMurray said. “This last match we fell short a couple points each time, and some of the things that were in place for us the whole tournament had breakdowns.”

In the opening set, North Thurston – the runner-up to Ridgeline last season – tried to distance itself, and led by as many as four points.

But led by all-Greater Spokane League first-teamers Berkeley Neilson and Kela Williams, the Wildcats tied the score at 19.

Alas, the Rams closed on a 6-1 run to take the set. That trend continued the final two sets.

Each time the Wildcats mounted a rally, North Thurston extinguished the threat.

Slow starts also hampered Mt. Spokane. The Rams scored the first points in the final two sets.

In the deciding set, the Wildcats pulled to within a couple of points several times, the last being on a kill by Hannah Meythaler to make the score 21-19.

It was as close as they would get.

It was the fifth appearance in the championship match for the Wildcats. They were looking to add a third championship to the back-to-back titles they won in 2018 and ’19.

“They’re the second best 3A team in the state,” McMurray said of her team. “It’s hard to end your season on a loss but they have to remember they had an incredible tournament.”

The Wildcats began Saturday defeating sixth-seeded Bellevue 25-12, 25-23, 25-27, 25-17 in the semifinals.

Mt. Spokane had beaten GSL rival and defending state champion Ridgeline in Friday night’s quarterfinals after handling Timberline earlier in the day.