Lady Braves drive spikes into big-school foes

Bigger isn’t necessarily better.

The Woodinville and Squalicum high school volleyball teams have learned that lesson the hard way.

The 2B La Conner Lady Braves schooled both larger campus squads in early season non-conference net action last week.

The Lady Braves overcame a sluggish start to earn a straight-sets win over 4A Woodinville on Tuesday, then defeated Squalicum 3-1 two nights later.

Heather Henriksen sparked La Conner at Woodinville, delivering 14 straight service points after the Lady Braves had fallen behind 6-0 in the opening set.

La Conner, thanks in great measure to strong serving by Henriksen, came back to claim that first session 25-17.

The Lady Braves followed with 25-18 and 26-24 triumphs in the second and third sets, respectively.

Henriksen was flawless on 23 attempts behind the stripe, including six aces. She was also a force at the net with five kills.

“We just clicked and the girls came out fired up and ready to go,” La Conner head coach Suzanne Marble said afterward. “It was a huge confidence builder for us getting a big win on the road.”

Marble praised her club’s balanced attack. The Lady Braves were able to force the action from multiple spots using different hitters.

Kamea Luna paced the victors with 10 kills and added three service aces. Emma Christianson chipped in a half dozen kills to go along with a pair of aces and 13 digs.

Olivia Hedlund set up La Conner frontliners with 27 assists.

Nicole Henricksen led the Lady Braves defensively, hitting the deck for 16 digs.

La Conner carried its momentum from Woodinville over to the Squalicum match. The Lady Braves downed the Bellingham area school 25-9, 25-11, 28-30, 25-15.

Serving was again a strong suit for the Lady Braves.

“We were 94 percent on the night serving and we set the tone for the match early in set one,” said Marble.

Hedlund was perfect on 18 serve attempts and effectively read Squalicum’s defense throughout the contest.

She finished with a match-best 37 assists, often keeping Squalicum off-balance with her deft passing.

“Olivia did a great job,” Marble noted, “of mixing up her offense and trying new things.”

Christianson provided another all-around solid performance, said Marble. In addition to her team-high 11 kills, Christianson had 25 digs.

“She was a huge part of our serve receive,” Marble said.

Heather Henriksen again filled the stat sheet with nine kills, six aces, and 22 digs. Luna enjoyed similar success with seven kills, three aces, and two blocks.

Sophomore Ashley Watkins pounded another six kills for the winners.

Defensively, Nicole Henricksen extended volleys with 18 digs.

“Nicole really ran a great defense against Squalicum,” said Marble, whose charges responded to every challenge.

“We focused on the fundamentals and taking care of the ball,” she stressed. “Set three was good for us in that we lost a close one and then came out in set four and won 25-15. That shows our players have confidence that they can do it.”

La Conner hopes to further build on that confidence with two more pre-league matches this week.

The Lady Braves hosted Meridian late Tuesday and entertain Anacortes tonight, Wednesday, before visiting NW2B rival Darrington in a key Sept. 23 pairing.