STATE 3A/2A VOLLEYBALL: Kellogg advances to semifinals
Kellogg's Paige Yrjana taps the ball past two West Side defenders during the Wildcats' win over the Pirates at the 3A State Tournament at Lewiston High School.
JOSH McDONALD
• 3A
LEWISTON — The second-seeded Kellogg Wildcats secured a state trophy for the first time in program history and continued their deepest postseason run in decades, defeating sixth-seeded West Side 26-24, 25-17, 23-25, 25-12 in the second round of the state 3A tournament Friday at Lewiston High School.
Kellogg (20-1) advanced to the state semifinals for the first time in at least 40 years.
The opening set tested the Wildcats early. West Side repeatedly threatened to seize control, but Kellogg answered each challenge, erasing deficits multiple times before closing out the set. The momentum carried into the second set, where the Wildcats' attack kept the Pirates from finding any sustained rhythm.
West Side refused to fade away, however, forcing Kellogg coach Hollie Yrjana to adjust the Wildcats' offensive approach midway through the match.
"We had to adapt," Yrjana said. "But Gretah (Angle), Paige (Yrjana), and Ella (Yrjana) and the rest of the girls did a great job getting everyone on the same page."
No statistics were available following the match, but Kellogg leaned heavily on the play of Angle, a sophomore. Her hitting helped propel the Wildcats through the first two sets, and she later became one of the team's most effective passers as Kellogg pulled away in the decisive fourth set.
"Gretah really kicked (butt) tonight," Yrjana said. "But all our girls played exceptionally today."
The Wildcats took control late, dominating the fourth set en route to the historic victory and guaranteeing at least a third-place finish in the double-elimination tournament. The top four finishers receive trophies.
Kellogg will face fifth-seeded Nampa Christian at 11 a.m. Saturday with a berth in the state championship match at 4 p.m. on the line. Nampa Christian (18-9) advanced by upsetting top-seeded Ambrose on Friday afternoon.
"Winning today means so much to our program," Yrjana said. "I think we're going to be bringing home our program's first state trophy. I just hope the girls are ready and remember to have fun."
• 2A
Potlatch d.
Lakeside
REXBURG — The eighth-seeded Knights, at state for the first time since 2011, bowed out in two games after falling to the fourth-seeded Loggers 25-6, 25-16, 25-6 in a loser-out match in the state 2A tournament at Madison High.
Further details were not available.
Lakeside finished 9-13.