Warriors bumped from state volleyball tournament

ANCHORAGE — Wasilla’s state tournament run came to an end Saturday morning, but not without the program’s highest finish in nearly 15 years.

East Anchorage posted a 3-0 (25-12, 26-24, 25-18) victory over the Warriors during elimination-round action of the ASAA/First National Bank 4A State Volleyball Championships at the Alaska Airlines Center in Anchorage.

Senior libero Courtney Anthony, who was named all-tournament late Saturday, capped her stellar career with a 22-dig effort against the Thunderbirds. Anthony collected 103 digs during Wasilla’s four state tournament matches. Senior Leya DePriest led Wasilla with seven total blocks. Senior Merit Paramo added nine digs.

Wasilla, which also won the tournament’s academic award with a 3.57 cumulative grade point average, placed fourth overall, posting its highest finish in a state tournament since the Warriors won the title in 2001.

During the tournament, the Warriors beat a pair of teams that had scored at least three victories over Wasilla during the regular season. Wasilla opened with a 3-2 win over West Valley in the first round. West Valley, the Mid-Alaska Conference champions, entered the state tournament undefeated, with a 15-0 record. After suffering a 3-0 loss to South Anchorage in the second round, Wasilla bounced back to earn a 3-2 victory over Kodiak. The Bears swept Wasilla during a Northern Lights Conference regular season series, and beat Wasilla again in the NLC title match.

Dimond earned the 4A state title Saturday night, using a 3-2 (18-25, 20-25, 25-13, 25-15, 15-7) victory to earn its fifth championship in eight years.