Warriors move forward in state tourney with win over Kodiak

ANCHORAGE — After watching her team pull together and earn a victory over West Valley during the first round of the state tournament Thursday, Wasilla head coach Josie Cannon said she believed her team was among the top four 4A squads in Alaska.

Friday, the Warriors proved Cannon right.

Wasilla scored a 3-2 (27-25, 20-25, 12-25, 25-19, 15-9) win over the Kodiak Bears during elimination-round action of the ASAA/First National Bank 4A State Volleyball Championships at the Alaska Airline Center in Anchorage.

“I strongly felt we’re a top-4 team, and it turned out that way,” an elated Cannon said after her team’s win.

Wasilla won the final two sets of the match to stay alive in the tournament, and move into a Saturday morning match with East Anchorage. The Warriors and T-Birds meet at 10 a.m., with a chance to move one step closer to the state championship match. The win over Kodiak ensured Wasilla of a top-4 finish in the tournament.

The win was also Wasilla’s first of the season against Kodiak, a rival in the Northern Lights Conference. Kodiak had beat the Warriors three times earlier this season, a regular-season series sweep in Kodiak and again in the NLC championship match.

“I’m happy to finally get a win against them,” Cannon said of the Bears.

It’s also the second time in the tournament that Wasilla beat a team that had defeated the Warriors three times during the regular season. The Warriors opened its tourney with a 3-2 win over West Valley Thursday. Cannon said she believed the confidence her players gained by edging the Wolfpack helped Wasilla prevail during the win over Kodiak.

“It was huge,” Cannon said of the experience. “Huge for our team.”

Cannon said she also saw a difference in her team, as the Warriors worked to close the door on the Bears late. Thursday, West Valley threatened to chew into Wasilla’s lead late in the fifth set, before Wasilla was able to score match point. But on Friday, Wasilla held onto the momentum late.

“They had a lot of confidence and they trusted each other,” Cannon said of her team.

After Wasilla scored a 27-25 win in the first set, Kodiak earned wins in consecutive sets to take a lead in the match. Kodiak jumped to an early lead in Game 3, and won the set 25-12. Cannon said she’s proud of the way her team responded to the 13-point loss in the third game, and said late success during that game helped Wasilla during the remainder of the match.

“We were able to regain some of the momentum late in the game. We lost, but we still took momentum into the fourth set,” Cannon said.

Wasilla was also able to establish early leads in each of the final two sets of the match.

“We always need to catch that early lead. We seem to be able to do that, we just need to maintain (the lead),” Cannon said.

Leya DePriest led the attack up front for the Warriors, with a dozen kills and nine total blocks. Olivia Vincent added seven kills and five blocks. Merit Paramo used an all-around effort to added six kills, four blocks and 12 digs.

Courtney Anthony collected a team-best 29 digs for the Warriors. Lindsey Cizek finished with 21 digs and 25 assists. Maggie Zwolinski added a dozen digs and 11 assists.

Regardless of what happens Saturday, Wasilla stands alongside East Anchorage, South Anchorage and Dimond as the top four 4A teams in Alaska. Dimond clinched a spot in the 4A title match with its 3-0 win over South Friday night.

East and Wasilla play Saturday at 10 a.m., and the winner moves forward to face South at noon. The winner of that match moves into the championship game of the double-elimination bracket, scheduled for Saturday at 6 p.m.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.