After beating three of the highest groups Alaska inside a 48 hour interval on the 4A state volleyball championship event, the West Excessive group seemed like that they had the makings of this 12 months’s “group of future.”
The Eagles had vanquished the Wasilla Warriors, beat the top-ranked Dimond Lynx for the primary time this season and slayed the Colony Knights in a straight units sweep on their solution to punching their ticket to Saturday’s championship sport.
Because of the double elimination format of this 12 months’s event, Dimond wasn’t finished for good regardless of dropping to its abruptly surging rival West. The Lynx have been closely favored to win all of it this 12 months however once they fell to the Eagles, it apparently served because the get up name they wanted.
Dimond performed its manner again right into a rematch with West the place they’d drive a title tiebreaker by sweeping the Eagles in three straight units (25-10, 27-25, 26-24) on Saturday on the Alaska Airways Middle. The Lynx saved up the momentum topping West once more 30-20 to say their first state title since 2018.
“I feel that loss was truly actually necessary for us,” senior libero Kailei Muehlenkamp mentioned. “It confirmed us that now we have to battle, that we are able to’t simply stroll in and suppose that now we have it when actually we don’t. Preventing again like this modified us.”
She mentioned it pressured them to “flip the swap so fast” and the Warriors have been the primary as much as style their wrath as Dimond swept them in three straight units on Friday. Dimond beat the Knights in 4 units the next afternoon to succeed in the rematch towards West.
“I’m glad they noticed it that manner,” head coach Kim Lauwers mentioned. “It’s a unique manner to have a look at it and there’s no feeling sorry for your self. It’s simply ‘Hey, now you bought a unique path and you bought to have a look at one match at a time.’ And that’s what we did.”
Muehlenkamp was nonetheless in center faculty when the Lynx final hoisted the First Nationwide Financial institution 4A state championship trophy and after ending as runner-ups to South final 12 months, she was glad to come back out on high and finish her highschool volleyball profession as a champion.
“Oh my gosh it feels so good,” she mentioned. “Freshman 12 months coming in, I didn’t even suppose I used to be going to make this group. I went from C-Workforce all the best way up and there have been a pair women on the group that took the identical path as me and we’re all starters.”
With the win, Dimond accomplished the hardly ever achieved triple crown because the Lynx additionally gained the Cook dinner Inlet Convention and Area IV championships as properly this season.
“These are far and few, can’t get these on a regular basis,” Lauwers mentioned. “That was a objective of ours in order that was fairly particular.”
As gratifying as this triumph was for his or her group, the Lynx have empathy for the Eagles as a lot of them are shut pals and play on the identical membership groups once they’re not lacing up for his or her respective excessive faculties.
“I really like all these women a lot,” Muehlenkamp mentioned. “It was a lot enjoyable since you by no means know who’s going to point out up and who’s going to have the recent hand so that they play their high sport and we play our high sport.”