ADNA — Nearly 11 months ago, Toutle Lake and Adna met on Adna’s home court to battle for the 2B District 4 crown.
On Thursday, the stakes weren’t as high, but the result was the same, as the Pirates took down the Ducks 25-9, 25-13, 25-18 in a non-league game to improve to 6-0.
“It’s nice to be back home and come away with a win,” Dotson said.
The stakes weren’t the only difference between this match and the last two times these two teams met up.
Toutle Lake came into the gym without five seniors from last year’s state tournament team, and the Pirates have a couple of new faces as well, including McKenna Torrey.
The young Toutle Lake core showed flashes, but the experienced Pirates took control quickly and never looked back.
Two separate 9-0 runs helped the Pirates win the first set, while Adna held Toutle to just one run of three straight points in the second set.
The third set was as close as it got, as Toutle Lake trailed 20-16, but four straight Adna points set up match point.
“We were just focused on ourselves,” Dotson said. “And doing what we needed to do in order to get the job done.”
Karsyn Freeman tallied 18 kills, nine digs, and six aces, while Danika Hallom added 15 digs, 12 kills, and nine assists. Gaby Guard led the team in assists with 27, and she also logged 14 digs. McKenna Torrey also reached double-digits defensively with 10 digs.
It’s only Adna’s second home win of the season, and it’s the first since Sept. 10 against Castle Rock.
Since then, the Pirates have challenged themselves against some of the best teams in Idaho and Washington.
After winning three of five shortened matches at the Freeman Tournament, the Pirates went back to the east side this past weekend to face Brewster and Mabton, the reigning 2B state champions.
Against Brewster, the Pirates won 25-10, 25-12, 25-11. Freeman led the way with 11 kills, six aces, and five digs, while Kendall Humphrey and Jaylee Humphrey logged 11 digs each. Kendall Humphrey also recorded eight kills and four stuff blocks, and Gaby Guard dished out 24 assists.
Adna then handed Mabton its first home loss in three years, topping the Vikings 16-25, 25-23, 16-25, 25-20, 15-10.
“We knew it would be a good game, no matter what we did,” Dotson said. “And we wanted to go in there and just play a solid game, and we came out with a victory … That is huge for the west side and for our program to go and defeat a state champion.”
Hallom left with 18 digs and 13 kills, while Jaylee Humphrey recorded 19 kills, 11 digs, four blocks, and two stuff blocks. Gaby Guard dished out 52 assists and added 11 digs, while Freeman finished with 33 kills and 16 digs.
Dotson was proud of the girls for coming home with a win, and to her, it was a sign that the Pirates could be even better than the 2023 squad that won a district title and entered the state tournament unbeaten.
“These girls can do amazing things when they play for each other,” Dotson said. “They’ve been tough in the weight room, and we’ve been conditioning every day. They made that commitment, and that's what they think is gonna help them go to that next level.”
The Pirates (6-0) will be back on the road again on Tuesday when they head to Napavine for their final non-league game.
