MCDERMITT - In the week leading up to the season, McDermitt High School volleyball coach Jaimi Wilkinson's expectations were to just get in to the regional playoffs.
Those expectations have now certainly changed. The Lady Bulldogs started out the year with four seniors and three freshmen, but recently were aided with the return of senior Cheyenne Urban.
Instead of hoping to make the playoffs, it appears McDermitt will go into the regional championships as the No. 1 seed in the Division IV East.
The Lady Bulldogs (10-10 overall, 8-2 Division IV East) swept a pair of matches on Saturday from rival Owyhee. McDermitt won the first match of the doubleheader 25-15 and 25-19 and the second match 24-26, 25-12 and 15-12.
"It got a little interesting at times, but that was fun," said Wilkinson. "We didn't play well at times, but it was probably the best two matches they have played together all year. It was good to get Cheyenne back into the lineup. Her serving was phenomenal, and my freshmen did a good job."
The first set of the first match was a back-and-forth affair, with Sharon Sherburn giving McDermitt its first lead at 5-4 off a kill. Owyhee countered with a 5-1 run to lead 9-6, but it was all Lady Bulldogs after that.
Trailing 10-9, McDermitt reeled off seven of the next eight points, ending with an ace by Va Draunidalo. The Lady Bulldogs made sure the Braves didn't come back as Urban fired off four aces in a five-point stretch to give the McDermitt the 10-point win.
The Lady Bulldogs had to dig themselves out of a 10-3 deficit in the second set. McDermitt went on an 8-4 run to get back into the set at 14-11. Trailing 18-14, the Lady Bulldogs countered with an 8-0 run, with Staheli Wilkinson giving McDermitt its first lead at 19-18. The Lady Bulldogs scored the next three points to take a 22-18 advantage and closed out the match with an ace by Sherburn and a kill by Wilkinson.
"The kids played well and they really wanted it," said the coach. "I was thinking we could make the playoffs at the start of the year, but I didn't think winning the league was going to be in the cards. This group of girls has exceeded my expectations."
It looked to be much of the same in the second match as McDermitt scored six of the first seven points if the first set. Wilkinson had a kill and an ace and Sherburn a block and a kill in that stretch.
However, the Braves rallied and took the lead at 15-14 and held the advantage until 18-18, when Urban served up an ace for the Lady Bulldogs.
McDermitt had set point at 24-21, but missed the next serve. It went from bad to worse on the next point as two McDermitt players collided head first and were down on the floor for a short time. After a timeout by the Lady Bulldogs, the Braves kept the momentum going and were able to pull out the 26-24 win.
"I did not want to have an injury timeout, so I called a regular timeout," Wilkinson said. "They hit heads pretty good and were dazed. We have to win that game when we are up 24-21. We were not playing to win but not to lose."
With the second set tied at 6-6, McDermitt countered with a 7-0 run, including two kills by Wilkinson, an ace by Sherburn and a kill by Deandra Dave. The Lady Bulldogs cruised from that point and were not threatened again.
McDermitt started slowly in set three, and trailed 6-2, when Urban stepped back up to the service line. The senior followed with three aces to give the Lady Bulldogs a 7-6 advantage. McDermitt continued to hold the lead at 11-8, when Owyhee fought back with three straight points.
The Lady Bulldogs regained the advantage on the next point after a missed serve by the Braves. Catches gave McDermitt match point at 14-11 on an ace and on the next point Owyhee hit the ball out of bounds, giving the Lady Bulldogs the win.
"I am very proud of my girls," Wilkinson said. "They are a team that gets along well. They understand their position on the floor."
McDermitt was scheduled to host Austin on Friday afternoon, but the Fillies did not show up for the match.
McDermitt traveled to Crane, Ore., on Monday and results were not available at press time. The Lady Bulldogs are now off until Friday, Nov. 2, when they will open play in the Division IV regional tournament in Spring Creek. Matchups have not been announced as of yet.
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