Back and forth it went — the fourth-set point seemingly never going to end.
An apparent kill from Issaquah, stopped by a diving save from Bothell. An apparent kill from Bothell, answered by a quick flick of the wrist from Issaquah.
The volleyball traded sides of the net roughly 20 times on Monday night before the Eagles were called for a double-hit penalty — a tough end to an epic rally, and one that sealed Issaquah’s fate.
“It just kind of snowballed a bit after that, and they lost their mindfulness,” Eagle head coach Todd Parsons said.
After winning the rally, Bothell claimed the final three points of the fourth set, winning 25-20, and cruised to a 15-4 victory in the deciding fifth set.
Perhaps most impressive, the Cougars went on a string of 43 straight points between the fourth and fifth sets where they didn’t commit a single hitting error.
“That’s amazing, phenomenal, but it wasn’t like their swings were killer swings,” Parsons said. “They were good hard swings, but we just weren’t terminating the ball and we’re a termination team, built on being big, strong and powerful and we weren’t.”
With second place in the KingCo 4A on the line, Issaquah started the match out strong. The Eagles won the first set 29-27 behind nine kills and two blocks from Alyssa Schultz. She finished with a team-high 19 kills and four blocks.
Bothell claimed the second set, 25-22, before Issaquah won the third, 25-23.
Allie Hadley led the Cougars with 20 kills. Teammates Sarah Norris and Haley Bedell had 18 and 16, respectively. Sara Hanna had 11 kills and four aces for the Eagles, while Stephanie Stoll had nine kills and three blocks.
The win moved Bothell (8-1 in league, 10-2 overall) into sole possession of second place in the KingCo 4A. The loss broke a six-game win streak for Issaquah (7-2, 7-5), which fell into third place with two league matches remaining.
“The only thing that comes in with the seeding is that we’ll probably end up in third, which means we’ll be in the same half of the (playoff) bracket (as Bothell), which means we’ll have to play at their house,” Parsons said. “We’ll get to do this again.”
Issaquah faces Inglemoor at 7 p.m., Wednesday on the road, then closes out the regular season at 7 p.m., Monday, Oct. 26 at home against Newport.
Eastlake fends off Garfield
Eastlake jumped out to a quick two-set lead Monday night, eventually holding off Garfield for a five-set, 25-19, 25-20, 18-25, 7-25, 15-11 victory.
Alyssa Charlston led the Wolves with a match-high 24 kills. Mercedes Bass had 36 assists and 15 digs.
Eastlake improved to 4-5 in league and 5-6 overall. The Wolves face Lake Washington on Wednesday, then close out the season against Plateau rival Skyline at 7 p.m., Monday, Oct. 26 at EHS.
Skyline dominates Lake Washington
Skyline defeated winless Lake Washington Monday in three sets, 25-14, 25-23, 25-14.
Maddie Magee had 10 kills for the Spartans, while Madison Stoa had 20 assists and six aces. Andrea Chon had 12 digs and three aces.
Skyline improved to 5-4 in league and 5-7 overall. The Spartans host Garfield at 7 p.m., Wednesday night, then close the regular season out against Eastlake at 7 p.m., Monday, Oct. 26 on the road.
Eastside stunned by Holy Names
Eastside Catholic suffered a surprising five-set loss to Holy Names Monday night, falling 25-21, 25-20, 12-25, 19-25, 15-10.
The Crusaders were without two key players, Kameron McLain and Cami Silverman, who were recovering from injuries. Brooke Bachesta led the Crusaders with 20 kills and 18 digs. Sarah Pancottine had 30 digs, and Kelsey Miller had 27 assists and 13 digs. Eastside Catholic closes out the regular season at 7 p.m., Wednesday at Seattle Prep.
