When Aberdeen came to Ron Brown Court to face Centralia last season, the Tigers nearly pulled off a reverse sweep in a back-and-forth contest.
Tuesday’s matchup was just as close as last year’s matchup through the first three sets, but the Tigers faded in the fourth and the Bobcats left with a 17-25, 25-23, 25-21, 25-21 win.
Centralia took control in the first set, going on a 7-0 run to extend a two-point lead into a nine-point cushion, and they finished it off moments later.
“Our energy was working in that first set,” Centralia coach Marti Smith said. “and then we let them slowly slide back.”
Aberdeen took a 10-5 lead in Set 2, but the Tigers (2-4, 0-2 2A EvCo) scored five straight to tie the game at 10.
“The way they played at times, it was so much fun,” Smith said of the surge. “And that’s what we’re capable of doing.”
The rest of the set was as back-and-forth as it could be, as the score was tied at nine other instances over the next 22 points. Aberdeen was able to finish the game off with the final four points to tie the match at one set each.
Another five-set thriller seemed to be in store, even when Centralia let a 21-18 lead slip away by allowing Aberdeen to score the final seven points of the third set to take a 2-1 lead.
The Bobcats took the momentum from the end of the third and rolled into the fourth, taking a 7-2 lead and later extending it to 20-10. The Tigers went on a 9-3 run to cut into the deficit, but it was too little, too late.
“There was fight, but it was only in spurts,” Smith said. “We were internalizing too much instead of shaking things off and playing our game.”
Smith commended Neela Haywood, who came off the bench and made a few nice plays to fire up the bench when they trailed in the final set.
“It was exciting to see our bench excited for her, our players on the court were excited for her,” Smith said. “I thought that was a great spark right there that helped us get back into that set.”
McKenna Smith tallied 11 digs and five kills, and she and Madison Breckel combined for 30 assists. Hollynn Wakefield went a perfect 10 for 10 from the service line and notched seven kills, while Brooklyn Sprague added 11 digs and seven kills. Payton Baumel had four blocks, and Mckenzie Erickson delivered three aces.
Mikaela Marazita had an outstanding all-around night, collecting 13 digs, eight kills, three blocks, and three aces. Additionally, she was often the spark of energy for the Tigers.
“She’s a volleyball kid,” Smith said. “She just brings it. Every night, she brings high energy, and it trickles down to the other players.”
With the loss, the Tigers now sit at 0-2 in EvCo play, an unenviable spot with matchups against Black Hills, W.F. West, and Tumwater on the schedule over the next nine days.
“It’s really tough,” Smith said. “You wanted to be able to start off 2-0 before going into these next games. We have to figure out how to play that way on a consistent level.
“I believe that they’re gonna get there. They want it, now we just have to execute.”
