Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Deife hits milestone in tournament
Odessa junior MacKenzie Lutz dives after a dig during the Tigers' four-set loss to Mary Walker at the 1B State Tournament Thursday, Nov. 9.
Odessa senior Hayden Schuh tries to defend a Mary Walker kill in the Tigers' four-set loss to the Chargers at the 1B State Tournament Thursday, Nov. 9.
Odessa junior Reegan Carstensen sets up a kill against Mary Walker at the 1B State Tournament Thursday, Nov. 9.
YAKIMA - The Odessa volleyball team rode their momentum from a thunderous run through the District 7 1B Tournament into the first round of the State 1B Tournament at the Sundome last week, but that momentum was snuffed by the eventual state champions.
The Tigers won their first match, but dropped their final two matches at state to conclude their season.
First up for the No. 9 Tigers was No. 8 Orcas Island Wednesday, Nov. 8. Odessa got off to a quick 10-4 lead and held off the Vikings from there, holding leads of 19-13, 23-16 and finally, 25-16 for a set victory.
Orcas Island built a 4-point lead in the second set, but the Tigers rallied to take a 17-14 lead before pulling away for a 25-20 set win.
The Vikings clung to a slim 16-14 lead in the third set, but a 7-3 run by the Tigers gave Odessa a 21-17 lead it wouldn't surrender en route to a 25-20 set win to secure the match sweep.
Melloney Deife led Odessa with 24 assists, 16 digs and five aces, while Hayden Schuh added 10 kills and two blocks.
Odessa's reward for the victory was a state quarterfinal matchup with two-time defending champion Oakesdale later last Wednesday night. Despite jumping out to an early lead, the Tigers couldn't hang with the top-ranked Nighthawks.
Oakesdale swept Odessa 25-20, 25-13, 25-20.
"We played well against them and at one point were up 14-8 in the first set," Odessa head coach Suzie Deife said. "In the end they are a team that doesn't make very many errors and we made more errors to lose in three sets."
The Tigers still had a chance for a trophy after heading to the fifth/sixth place bracket with three other teams. The opponent was fellow District 7 member Mary Walker, with the winner securing a spot in the fifth/sixth place game against Northport.
The Chargers of Springdale quickly built a 16-10 lead in the first set that swelled to 19-11 before a 25-20 first set victory.
Odessa made a comeback with an exciting, 30-28 second-set victory after falling behind 20-17 to tie the match 1-1.
But it was all Mary Walker from there, as the Chargers won the third set 25-14 and the fourth set 25-17 to advance and send Odessa packing.
"Overall, it's disappointing not placing at state but the girls gave it 110% and played tough against all the teams and that is exactly what I asked them to do," Suzie Deife said.
Individually, the Tigers had a milestone reached at state. Melloney Deife recorded her 2,000th career assist against Oakesdale before ending her career at 2,034 assists.
Odessa finished the season with a 12-11 record, including 4-3 in postseason play.
Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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