Gig Harbor falls short in title match

Tides suffer just one regular season loss heading into tourney

Marques Hunter

of the Gateway

The Gig Harbor and Olympia volleyball teams didn’t disappoint in the Narrows League championship match.

The two undefeated teams engaged in a five-game thriller with the Bears – ranked third according to the state coaches association – edging the No. 7 ranked Tides 15-13 and clinching the league title for the second year in a row at Gig Harbor High School last Thursday.

Gig Harbor then (9-1 league, 13-1 overall) traveled to Central Kitsap (7-3 league, 10-4 overall) and swept the Cougars 25-10, 25-20, 25-19 for its final match of the regular season on Monday to claim the No. 2 seed heading into the league tournament, which begins this week.

The most highly anticipated league match of the season was an emotional roller coaster from start to finish.

The Bears opened the contest with a 25-23 win that saw 11 ties and seven lead changes.

Gig Harbor went straight to work in the second game by spraying Olympia’s defense with different angled spikes.

Tides senior Anna Guenther’s left-handed arsenal exposed a tall front line. She finished with a game-high 15 kills.

Tides’ Maddy Miller dished out a game-high 46 assists. Her precise setting positioned Gig Harbor for a 25-20 win during the pivotal second game.

Then like sharks when blood is in the water, they moved quickly into attack mode.

Gig Harbor began to execute while Olympia struggled. The Bears fell into a bottomless 19-9 double-digit hole during the third game.

The Tides were grooving. The crowd was behind them. They had won game three 25-22.

Game four was an epic seesaw battle. With the scored knotted 14-14, the Tides surged ahead by scoring eight of the next 11 points.

Gig Harbor’s feet were pressed firmly on Olympia’s throat with a 22-17 advantage and a clear path to becoming league champions.

But like any quality team faced with adversity, the Bears refused to surrender. They choreographed a stunning comeback, scoring nine out of the last 11 points to win game four 26-24.

Gig Harbor head coach Sue Westering believed that was their best shot to win.

“That was it,” Westering said. “We weren’t able to close the door. They (Olympia) are such a great team. Balls that would normally go down were spouting back up.”

The Bears defense combined for 105 digs with Lauren Herseth’s registering a game-high 30.

Westering added that the Tides committed too many unforced errors in clutch situations.

“For us to grow, it gets back to eliminating our own mistakes,” she said.

Olympia head coach Laurie Creighton said the rally late in game four was a microcosm of their season.

“We did tonight what we’ve been doing, which is bouncing back and finding ways to get it done,” Creighton said. “We had a lot of unforced errors. Gig Harbor played tough. It came down to who can withstand those swings and momentums and stay steady.”

After the Tides dropped game four, the momentum shifted into the hands of the Bears.

Gig Harbor tied the score three times in game five but never claimed the lead. Olympia turned it up one extra notch in the end.

The Tides staged one last comeback by scoring four consecutive points trailing 14-13. But it wasn’t quite enough, as Olympia won game five 15-13.

Miller said the loss is another thing that makes them a stronger team.

“It was an important game but all of our games are important,” Miller said. “We came out knowing they were going to be tough competition. We really fought but we made some of our own mistakes.”

Individual statistics

The Gig Harbor team had a well-rounded performance. Guenther finished with 15 kills followed by Allie Tonzi (13) and Samantha North (9).

Miller organized 46 assists and had five aces. Taylor Robinson had 25 digs and Kelsie Jenkins recorded 2.5 blocks.

Olympia’s Jennifer Liedes had 12 kills and seven blocks. Lisa Chulich had a double-double performance with 15 kills and 21 digs. Lauren Herseth recorded nine kills, 30 digs and three aces. Sarah Stoker stuffed Gig Harbor seven times and Michelle Christy had 37 assists, four blocks and registered 17 digs. Annie Sing gave her team a solid defensive effort with 24 digs. Nina Holbrooks finished with four blocks and Jamie Wolth had 13 digs and three aces.

Reach sports reporter Marques Hunter at 253-853-9246 or by e-mail at marques.hunter@gateline.com.