Lady Braves net bronze medal at State tourney

Theirs was a weekend business trip to Yakima, not one to work on tans.

Yet the La Conner High Lady Braves returned home bronzed anyway.

All of which made their annual stop at the Sun Dome yet another bright shining moment for one of Washington’s premier volleyball programs.

La Conner, 21-4, captured the bronze medal at last week’s State 2B net trials, defeating District tourney rival Mossyrock in four sets to place third and finish in the hardware.

And, in what certainly bodes well for the future, the Lady Braves did so with just a lone senior — versatile Emma Christianson — on the roster.

“She definitely played an important role in the team’s success this year,” La Conner head coach Suzanne Marble said of Christianson, who delivered 11 kills and 24 digs in the medal round triumph over Mossyrock.

She had plenty of help.

“We had a great year,” said Marble, “and it was a complete team effort from start to finish. All 12 girls were integral to our success, and I’m so very proud of this team.”

La Conner, which arrived at Yakima Friday seeded eighth, used its depth to quickly rise through the bracket.

The Lady Braves swept Northwest Christian-Colbert and White Swan in successive matches, parlaying crisp serving and strong defense into twin wins.

The youthful La Conner team showed few jitters in its 25-17, 25-20, 25-22 first round victory.

“It was a good opening performance for us,” Marble said afterward, “and I was pleased with our effort.”

Ashley Watkins and Heather Henriksen were flawless from the service stripe against Northwest Christian, with Henriksen notching one of La Conner’s five aces in the match.

As a team, the Lady Braves put pressure on NC-C by placing 94 percent of their serves.

Nearly impressive was La Conner’s 82 percent mark on defense.

Kamea Luna extended volleys with a team-best 17 digs, one of five La Conner players to reach double digits in that category.

Heather Henriksen chipped in 14 digs, while Olivia Hedlund and Nicole Henriksen each rang up 13 more.

Christianson, meanwhile, hit the deck for 10 digs in addition to being a force at the net with 11 kills.

LeAnne Swan and Watkins combined on seven kills for the Lady Braves, who wrote a similar script against White Swan and thus earned a berth in the State semifinals.

Nicole Henriksen sparked La Conner in its 25-22, 25-17, 25-17 defeat of the Lady Cougars.

The Lady Braves’ defensive specialist tallied a match-high 30 digs.

“She was perfect on defense,” Marble noted, “and as our libero that brought a huge amount of confidence to our team. Nicole was a real leader for us.”

The evidence was readily apparent in the play of her teammates.

Hedlund ignited the La Conner attack with 30 assists, and added 13 digs and three service aces for good measure.

Christianson and Luna accounted for eight kills apiece, while Watkins added another seven.

In addition, Christianson and Luna each reached double figures in the digs column. Christianson finished with 20. Luna had 11.

Heather Henriksen and Swan combined on 10 kills, and both were perfect from the service line. Heather led La Conner with five aces, while Swan added a pair of whiffs, just one less than Watkins.

La Conner’s only setback at Yakima was to Wahkiakum, to whom the Lady Braves had dropped a tough five-setter at Districts.

This time, a veteran Lady Mules front line proved the difference in straight sets.

“Our offense struggled in this match,” Marble acknowledged, “and we had a tough time terminating the ball and getting kills.”

The Lady Braves rebounded a couple hours later, however, to post its 3-1 win over Mossyrock.

A key for La Conner, coming off the grueling match with Wahkiakum, was its bench play.

Marble inserted Lindsay Lowry into the Lady Braves lineup at key junctures, a move that was several times over.

Eight times, in fact.

That’s the number of kills Lowry chalked up in a reserve role.

“Lindsay was huge for us,” said Marble. “She brought power off the bench and came up big at crucial times.”

Hedlund triggered the La Conner offense with 33 assists. She also had 17 digs.

Christianson contributed 11 kills and 24 digs, with Watkins nearly matching her at the net, tallying 10 kills.

Nicole Henriksen collected 24 digs, two more than her sister, Heather, who had 22 to go along with four kills and a pair of service aces.

Luna hurt Mossyrock with seven kills, three aces, and 23 digs.

The bronze medal match was indicative of the Lady Braves’ style of play all season, said Marble.

“They showed character, poise, and commitment throughout the entire season,” she said. “They truly understand what it means to be a team.”