Third Time’s a Charm for W.F. West in Districts

MOVING ON: Bearcats Edge Rival Centralia in Five Sets in District Quarterfinals

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The third time was, indeed, a charm for W.F. West.

After losing twice to rival Centralia during the Evergreen 2A Conference regular season, in a total of seven sets, the Bearcats took down the Tigers on their home court Thursday night.

The bonus for W.F. West? The 25-19, 25-9, 16-25, 21-25, 15-8 victory moves the Bearcats into the semifinals of the 2A District IV volleyball tournament.

W.F. West (6-7) will head south on Saturday to play at Hudson’s Bay High School in Vancouver and is guaranteed a top-four district finish.

“It was great to see. We practiced really hard, we really pushed ourselves hard in practice, so it was good to see the fruits of that labor and being where we want to be,” W.F. West coach Emily Mora said, “and playing our best volleyball at the end of the season.”

Ava Olsen led the Bearcats with 10 kills, with Morgan Rogerson chipping in nine. Kambriah Simper served 17 of 17 with three aces, Alisha Anderson racked up 29 digs with eight aces, and Savannah Hawkins had 19 digs with four aces.

“Defensively, they covered the floor well,” Centralia coach Marti Smith said. “They were really reading well and they were just relentless, on the defensive end of things.”

It was the first time the Bearcats had a full, healthy roster for a match with Centralia, Mora noted.

“It was a fantastic matchup,” she said, adding that the Tigers’ scrappy defense presented a challenge for W.F. West offensively.



“We knew going into this game we had to increase our efficiency on our attack,” she said. “So we’ve been working to be smarter on our placement, and to go aggressive when we need to and finesse when we need to.”

Jadyn Hawley had 20 digs and eight kills while serving 15 of 15 for the Tigers. Peyton Smith added 11 digs and connected on all 26 of her serves, with nine aces, and Madison Stoeckler dished out 28 assists with 13 digs.

Maddie Corwin and Hailey Brann each had eight kills and Ella Orr added 16 digs.

“I thought my team was a class act. I thought they kept their composure well throughout the match,” Smith said. “My girls were very classy tonight, even in defeat, and I was really proud of them. We do wish our crosstown rivals the best as they go to the district finals.”

It was the final match for Centralia seniors Brann, Lily Miller, Faith Waterfield and Courtney Spriggs, and Smith thanked them for their work. The Tigers finish the season with a 9-2 record.

“Those seniors probably demonstrated the best senior leadership that we’ve had in a while,” Smith said. “They just took the leadership role on their own. They definitely set the bar high for underclassmen as they go through the program, and what that leadership looks like. They were absolutely amazing.”

W.F. West and Tumwater will represent the Evergreen 2A Conference in the district semifinals on Saturday, after Tumwater beat Black Hills 3-1 on Thursday. 

W.F. West faces Woodland at 1 p.m. on Saturday, while Tumwater plays Ridgefield at 2:30 p.m. The losers play for third place at 4:30 p.m. and the winners play for the district title at 6 p.m.

“It was really gratifying tonight,” Mora said. “If you really dedicated yourself to the game and every single point, things might work out in your favor.”