Overall Finish = T - 3rd

Notes and Quotes:
Cowlitz Asics 18's geared up for the Volleyball Festival by tying for third at the 20-team Fife Tournament on Sunday, June 12th. The format placed the top four teams in a morning power pool with Kent Juniors, Puget Sound Gold, and Seattle Pumas joining fourth-seeded Cowlitz Asics. This power pool reflected the top three finishers from the recent Emerald City Classic to compliment our fifth place Emerald City finish.

This pool was brutal, and full of top-notch volleyball teams performing at a very high level. When all was said and done, Cowlitz was the only team to improve it's seed in pool, moving from 4th to third seed, losing in two to Puget Sound, a close loss in three to Kent Juniors, and in a first ever meeting, defeating Seattle Pumas in two.

After a first-round bye, Cowlitz played and/or reffed the next four. The tournament featured a solid all-around performance from Kara VanZanten, and Kelsey DeLaGrange. Kara in particular did not receive a break all day, playing every minute of all 11 games. Kelsey played the majority of games as well, receiving some relief early from Ashley Grayson before she went to the bench with an injury/illness. Rashelle, still recovering from graduation and related activities, assisted with the offensive punch, and spent some time in the back-row as well.

Ashley, Nicki and Jessica traded time in the middle, and ramped the offense up, supported by some stellar play from Stephanie and Kaitlyn. Kate flew in for the day from Sun River, in the middle of her senior trip, and flew back before the tournament ended. She performed admirably and was missed in the early evening, as the remaining "great eight" played their hearts out against the Puget Sound 16's and 18's Gold teams. Tasha logged time in the back-row as well as her typical day at left-front, forced into service due to the illness to Ashley.

It was a very long, hard day, full of intense competition that will prepare us for the road ahead. We scored more than enough points against Kent, but obviously it was not to be.

Next up is the Pre-Festival Tournament on Father's Day in Longview.

Overall Finish = 4th in Gold Division

Notes and Quotes:
It was a great run for the Cowlitz 18's Asics team, culminating in a fourth place finish in the Championship Division of the Regional Tournament at the Courts in Beaverton on Sunday. In a quirk in the scheduling, the top four teams from Saturday resumed competition on Sunday morning against the same teams that met in pool finals on Saturday afternoon.

As has been the case all year, we had a knock-down, drag-out battle with Nike Air Max in which we prevailed in three tough ones. From a spectator standpoint, this is top-notch volleyball entertainment. It is, however, breeding grounds for coaches' ulcers. It was a continuation of yesterdays' story line, great defense, ball control, and aggressive hitting sparked by spectacular rallies from both sides.

The win moved us into the semi-finals of the winners bracket against number two-seeded Webfoot Gold. We were on a roll. With strong team play, and some added offensive push from Ashley Grayson who returned from her track and field outing, we won game one by four and moved ahead 11-0 in game two before the wheels fell off the wagon. Try as we might, we could not keep the ball off the floor and ended up losing in three tough ones. Webfoot is a very solid team that did not make many mistakes. They definitely earned their victory.

We moved on to play in the "sudden victory" portion of the tournament, dispatching a game and competitive PVC purple team who had just eliminated Nike Air Elite from the tournament. It was not our best outing but it was solid and took us to fourth place where we met for the third time in 24 hours against Nike Air Max. We competed gamely but never got over the top, losing in two.

It was solid weekend for the team with many top performances. Most every one of the ten members took their game to the next level, but none more so than Jessica Srajer who has waited in the wings for her opportunity to arise. She had a spectacular weekend and is now a new weapon in the team arsenal.

Three weeks out of the gym with a return only for our banquet on May 4 should give kids a chance to finish their high school spring sports seasons and senior culminating projects before we return to action on Memorial Day weekend in Seattle.

Notes and Quotes:
Connecting with our heritage as we return to the 3rd seed

Granted, it is only the first day of Regionals, but it was nice to return to the third seed from which we fell two Power Leagues ago. Heritage High juniors, Nicki Kent, and Jessica Srajer, led the charge from the middle, with timely blocks, productive offense, and consistent serving. This was only made possible by setters Kendall Morris and Kelsey DeLaGrange who set the offense and dished the assists. Kendal read opponent's defenses quite well, and as always, Kelsey was dynamite with her aggressive offensive and defensive performance.

Kaitlyn Senn was very accurate from the service line, keeping teams off-balance and disrupting their offensive production. Her inspirational play was key to our defensive dominance. Stephanie Weishaar saved her most spectacular performance for the Nike Air Max match. I was convinced that several digs were headed to the floor on our side, but Steph would have none of it. Very tenacious, indeed.

Kara VanZanten and Tasha Kite were a bit off of their game until challenged in the pool final. They contributed all day from the service line and defensively, but dialed it up in the final with some monumental contributions at the net. Rashelle Davenport has been creating match-up problems for opponents all year long and today was no exception. Her offensive weapons have increased significantly from last year, and they were effective this afternoon. Her abilities allow us to stretch defenses.

Sunday at 10:00 am, a rematch with Nike Air Max sets the table for an exciting Regional Gold Division showdown with our highly competitive region partners. Stay tuned!

BRACKET

With three players playing out of their normal positions due to injuries and spring break, the team put forth a great effort in staying in the Gold, capturing 6th, and holding seed.

With Kara VanZanten still on injured reserve from her knee injury in Colorado, Jessica Srajer filled in admirably on the outside, contributing significantly as the day proceeded. We actually played better minus two players against Webfoot Gold this time than we did the last Power League when we were slow to wake up against a very solid team. The first game was spotty in the team department, but in the second game we made fewer communication errors and were more efficient offensively. Losing 0-2 put us on the fast track to recovery.

Next up was the Nike Air Max team. They knew our team way too well and went after our adjusted lineup with vigor. I was pleased at our team response, particularly in game two, pushing Nike to the wall. Defense was back to normal, blocking picked up, and offensively we moved several steps back up the ladder.

Game three pitted us against Team Yakima, winners of their own Yakima Jamboree, whom we have somehow not played for three years. Our new lineup was now clicking, Stephanie contested every dig, Kara could take it no more and tried her hand in the back row, and Tasha went nuts at the net! The games were very close but we prevailed in two to enter bracket play as a third seed.

In the bracket, Salem got after us big time, our defense and ball control headed off for vacation and we found ourselves down 9 points. Behind unmerciful serving streaks from Ashley, and aggressive hitting from Kelsey, we managed to tie the score at 23 only to lose the next two points and game one. It was Nicki's turn after a slow start. She blocked several, went to the service line and combined for 8 points and 5 digs as we moved ahead, winning game two going away. Rashelle moved to yet another level in games two and three and six-packed two different defenders, Kara made a frontcourt entry, and we were ahead 10-0. Tasha and Jessica combined for some big points, as did Kelsey at the net. We ended up winning 15-4.

The one game playoff for seeding with Rimrock was a seesaw battle of intensity. It was a great deal of fun, with Rimrock prevailing 21-25.

Next up is Regionals in two weeks where we will likely be seeded fifth. Once injuries and illness are behind us, we should compete for a top spot.

DAY : 2

DAY : 3

Asics loses 13-15 to eventual champion Central Cal in the Club Division of the Colorado Crossroads tournament in Denver, Colorado, securing a tie for ninth in the process. A top 16 finish was the goal as the sophisticated seeding formula seeded Asics 11th out of the 190 plus teams entered in the division.

Traveling for the first time since the 1988 national tournament (18th place) to Colorado, was both challenging and rewarding. New city, flights, hotels, climate and conditioning presented a great platform for challenging this year's team. It was the largest volleyball tournament ever presented under one roof with 103 courts.

It was a great run to the top 16 that began Friday with convincing two set wins over teams from Iowa, Texas and Colorado. Adjusting to the madhouse of the 700 plus teams and their fans converging on one site, mile high issues, and some less than completely healthy athletes, the team was led early by Tasha Kite's offense, the jump serving of Kelsey DeLaGrange, and the dominating blocking performance from Ashley Grayson, particularly against the big attacking left-hander from Texas. Team defense, ball control, and the ability to adjust to the different tempos from opponents spelled a successful day.

As expected, day two raised the stakes considerably. An extremely solid overall performance from all phases of the game gave us early success against a Woodlands Texas team that later assisted our cause. Critical contributions from Jessica Srajer, and timely serving and blocking from Nicki Kent were the key. Northern Lights was a very tall and athletic team from Minneapolis who created match up problems for us. We did not take care of the ball and lost in an uninspired two sets.

The third match was for bragging rights to the pool, against USA South from Florida who entered the match in first place in the pool. We had scouted the team twice, and the kids responded to our advice with Ashley Grayson dominating the net. This match was ours from the opening serve. Our defense, anchored by Stephanie Weishaar and Kaitlyn Senn, was rock solid. Scoring big and often were Kara VanZanten, and Rashelle Davenport, with both Rashelle and Tasha scoring six-pack kills off opponent's body parts! The team was highly motivated, and wanted the top record in the pool. It was probably the single most impressive team outing of the tournament. It was no contest.

The cross-over match to gain top 16 status took place five hours later against an Albuquerque team featuring a dominant 6'4" outside hitter. Always the serving expert at our national tournaments, Joe was relentless in his dissection of that hitter's passing weaknesses. As their coach stated later, his big girl was also his best passer but we took care of that! Kelsey and Kendall Morris distributed the ball, ever wary of her presence. Our team play and strategy basically neutralized their leader and threat. Battling an exhausted official and even weaker officiating team, kept it close for a while in game one. Game two was nervous time as the air was beginning to leave our balloon. With a focused time out, the team took the final step to the top 16 with a 25-17, 25-20 win.

The third day is always the toughest. Muscle soreness, fatigue, and mental drain are often victorious. Marcy ran a spirited warm-up activity that took care of any lingering doubts as to our readiness for the day. The first five points were even and then Central Cal went on a 6-0 run. Down 5-11 we began the climb back, dialing up our defensive intensity while maintaining ball control. This effort was led by Stephanie whose pursuit of the ball to all areas of the court was the inspiration we needed. Kaitlyn actually rolled to her left numerous times, blocks by Ashley, and Nicki, and tough serving allowed us to pull it out 25-21.

Midway through game two, we realized that Kara's "tweaked knee" was more significant than originally imagined. Jessica stepped into the fray and gave us a solid contribution, and we pieced together a back row plan as we taped Kara twice. Game two went south and we found our game hanging in the balance when we brought Jessica back in game three. She powered a kill and serve to keep it close. We were in a position to win but just could not get over the top, losing 12-15 to Central Cal who went on to win the tournament and with it the automatic bid to the national tournament in Salt Lake City.

It was an absolutely fantastic effort by a great group of student athletes. They are creating a legacy for future Cowlitz teams to measure up to.

BRACKET

Switching to a Sunday Power League schedule, the day after the Mark Morris boy's appearance in the state basketball finals was apparently not the best situation to provoke a peak performance from the team on the volleyball court. Our Gold Division is a tough place to be off of your game as the kids learned in an early morning match-up with Webfoot Gold. Frankly, it was no contest, as Webfoot settled the score with us in two quick games.

Next up was the Washington Volleyball Academy 17's. We were awake for this one and took care of business in two. This brought us up against the Region's top team in PVC Black … they are ranked number one for a reason. I was pleased with the early efforts, particularly from Ashley Grayson who accepted the challenge of stopping their #1 middle. We were even at 17 before several unforced errors did us in. Game two played out much the same, and due to our inattention in the morning, we were sent to the bottom half of the Gold bracket for afternoon play.

Several hours later, we played a semi-competitive match with Columbia Juniors, prevailing in game two 27-25 after trailing 23-20. We were, in a way, fortunate to win playing as we did, but it guaranteed us a spot in next months Gold Division. We ended with an uninspired one-game loss to Rimrock who has been playing at quite a high level this year. They beat us 18-25 to cement our position as 6th in Gold.

Hopefully, our uninspired period has passed. I certainly hope so as we travel to Denver in two weeks to take on our second national event in a month.

POOL : 2

BRACKET

The second pool beginning was interesting as we met our 18's blue team at the new venue of Washington Middle School. Blue hung with us for the first 10 points, but our superior height and athleticism eventually were the difference. It was a fun first official meeting with the junior dominated Blue team. A team dinner of teriyaki completed the first day as we served notice of our interest in competing for the Jamboree title.

Sunday morning found us at Eisenhower High School, site of the championship matches. We faced a feisty Club Selah team who had earlier served notice that they could not be ignored as they downed number three seeded Nike NW Jrs Air Elite. With focused effort, Cowlitz won game two 26-24 to move on to the second pool final against NW Jrs. Air Max from Gresham. This is our sister team and we have met three or four times already this season. It was a memorable three set match with Cowlitz prevailing 15-13. It looked more like an NBA match with both teams going on numerous runs. It turned out to be a very well played and exciting to watch event for all, and was the highlight match of the tournament for Cowlitz.

The 6-0 record with margin of victory calculated gave Asics a third seed placement in the championship 12 team bracket. Everyone was feeling good about the first team bye, the location of teams in our half of our bracket, and the possibilities of our team making the finals. I guess that is why you have to play the games!

We met the 6th seeded Moscow Juniors with their 6'3" athletic middle. Our effort was lackluster and we lost in three. A very disappointing, discouraging loss. We had waited for two hours to perform and just had no fire. Another two hours of waiting and we encountered the Olympia team. Leading 14-10 in game three, we managed to squander that match as well.

A solid 6-match performance faded in the two losses to leave us all shaking our heads. Lots of excuses could be offered, but truth be told, we just had no fire after winning pool two.

We are anxious to return to Power League this weekend. Minimal travel and a challenging field have our attention as we work through the grind of a three-week grueling tournament schedule.

SUNDAY

MONDAY

For the first time since 1988, the 18's made it into the Sunday night playoff rounds at the 256 team Las Vegas Desert Classic, eventually placing 25th. Originally seeded 93rd in the elite national field, Cowlitz battled after dropping 10 places to win the Sunday morning pool, shocking 7th seeded Vision Blue from Southern California in the process.

Working through flight delays, crowded streets and other obvious travel issues, the first match out of the gate was almost fatal to a successful tournament. Down one game to zero and three points from dropping game two, the team got it together to defeat Downstate (New York) in three. It was a titanic struggle and thankfully not a sign of things to come. Our match against Spike Sport from Houston showed signs of recovery but it was short lived. Encinitas from Southern California (who eventually placed 5th), trounced us in game one, limiting us to 7 points. Game two was slightly better and sent us into day two at Home Courts in Green Valley in dire straits as the 4th seed in the must-win elimination pool.

First up was the second seeded JCVC team out of Canada -- we played solid team ball and swept them aside. Next up was Vision Blue, a solid program with a national reputation for excellence. Our effort was truly spectacular, and saw the emergence of our two juniors, Jessica and Nicki, who led the team in inspirational net play. It now became obvious that we had an opportunity to advance to the evening's championship elimination rounds if we could just keep moving our game forward. Fresno was our obstacle and was a team that had defeated us in Reno last year. The team played high-level, intense volleyball in all phases, winning in three to celebrate our first Sunday pool championship since 1988. Our record in that pool was 3-0, with all of the other teams in the pool going 1-2 vs. each other.

Finishing pool at 2:30, we earned the opportunity to face 3rd seeded Kiva from Kentucky on one of the tournaments main courts at 7:30. Cowlitz played them better than even, and were tied at 17 in the first game, eventually succumbing to a much taller team in two games. It was a great moment in the national spotlight for the Club. We eventually left the gym for the day at 9:00, logging 14 hours in the gym on Sunday.

Monday pitted us against the 21st seeded City Beach team from San Jose. It was a valiant effort worthy of note, although not a victory. It was our best Monday effort in many years.

This was a total team weekend. Personal sacrifices were made in the name of team unity, and players stepped into roles and elevated their game to heights not seen before.

Rashelle brought her cannon left arm to pound relentlessly at confused blocks, and maintained solid ball control when called upon.

Kelsey was the first to move her game to another level of intensity and execution, staying there for the entire tournament. Her setting skills are expected, but her net game drew some rave reviews as well.

Ashley, known for her hitting and blocking skills, added a rocket serve and digging skills to the cause.

Nicki moved to a new level of accomplishment, particularly during the home court wins, leading the team in blocking and kills during our run of three consecutive match wins.

Tasha had led the team in kills in the previous two tournaments, and was the sparkplug on Saturday before rolling her ankle in the 3rd match. She saw limited duty Sunday, while resting and getting excited on the bench. She returned with a vengeance Sunday evening.

Kendall got in the groove with her setting and serving after a slow Saturday, and had some amazing plays on Sunday and Monday.

Kaitlyn is a solid DS with an extremely accurate serve and led all players in service points, and she also took serious heat from some very athletic, tall, offensive-minded opponents.

Jessica stepped in for Tasha and had a great Sunday as a left-side. She became comfortable in her role and made major additions to our kill totals and stuff blocks. She finished Monday at right-side with her solid play.

Kara is a rock and was our best attack option all tournament. She seldom sits, and her stamina and athleticism is noteworthy. Her back-row skills are solid and appreciated.

Stephanie, our libero, took on all-comers for three days, logging some serious airtime as a battering ram for opponent serves and attacks. Simply amazing.

We looked great on the courts, and even better at Sunday dinner. A great effort from a team of solid student athletes.

BRACKET

It was a modified lineup that took the floor early Saturday morning at the Albany Boys and Girls Club seeking to maintain gold status at days end. Kendell had a previous commitment which forced us into a 5-1 offense. The new formation took both Jessica and Kelsey out of their more comfortable attack roles, and in the process reduced our attack opportunities for three of the six rotations. We were uncomfortable early losing in two to Nike Air Max, and continued to struggle as we familiarized ourselves with different roles while still defeating Salem in two. After a slow start it all began to click against the second-seeded Webfoot Gold team.

With Rashelle handling new backcourt duties and carrying a heavier role in front court, and Ashley dominating at middle, we cruised in two against Webfoot maintaining our second seed heading into bracket play, giving us our first opportunity to compete against a very solid PVC squad. Our skill level continued to climb in game one, peaked in game two, and tapered a bit. It was a solid semi-final effort but not enough to get over the top.

The one-game playoff for 3rd and 4th was completed without our other Camas connection as the team voted to send Stephanie on her way early to prom. It was a close two-point loss to Nike Air Max, to close out the day.

Playing with reckless abandon all day was Kelsey, setting and defending at an extremely high level. Rashelle led all passers with 35 perfect attempts. Stephanie, with one less game than anyone else, led in the digging department with 34. Kelsey led in the scoring department with 25 points. Ashley, Nicki, and Rashelle, in that order, led in the blocking department with Ashley recording 29 touches and 6 stuffs. For the second tournament in a row Tasha led all with 27 kills followed closely by Kara. Top kill percentage went to Rashelle with 49 followed closely by Ashley with 48%.

Our next outing will be Presidents Weekend at the Las Vegas Desert Classic. We are looking forward to the challenge.

BRACKET

Kelsey DeLaGrange accumulated 69 assists and 40 service points, followed by Kendall Morris with 39 assists and 23 points.

Kaitlyn Senn led all servers with 8 aces and 25 points, to match her solid defensive performance. Stephanie Weishaar led all players with 49 perfect passes and 35 digs.

Ashley Grayson dominated the net with 30 kills, 15 stuffs, and 32 touches, followed by Nicki Kent with a solid attack percentage, 7 stuffs, and 13 touches.

Sunday marked the season debut of Jessica Srajer, who has been sidelined with an ankle injury since early December. It was great to see her on the court. Kara Vanzanten turned in her usual solid net game, spectacular defense, and amazing passing skills, igniting us in the finals with some very athletic plays.

We now turn it up a notch or two with February Power League, Las Vegas, and Yakima to challenge our resolve. Next up is Power League in Albany this Saturday.

In other pleasantly surprising news, Nicki Kent led the team with 9 stuff blocks, and was second in touches with 12, but even bigger news was her 27 service points tying high school classmate, Ashley Grayson, and fellow teammate Kendall Morris for serving honors!

Handling a massive 77 spike attempts with an over 50% success rate, Kara VanZanten sparked the offense, followed closely by Ashley with 29 kills. Kara was also very busy in the digging department, logging 35.

Back from the "big easy", Kaitlyn Senn started slow but finished on fire with 24 digs.

Kelsey DeLaGrange distributed 49 assists, followed by newcomer Kendall Morris with 31, as the two were kept busy running our new offense. It should be fun watching these two become accustomed to our 2005 offense, designed by new assistant, and former player, Marcy Gilchrist.

The team will road trip twice this week for practice (Vancouver), and for the Power League Qualifier (Albany) on Saturday.

The high water mark for this tournament, and on the young season today, was the team's almost perfect performance against Power Surge 18's in cross pool morning action. The final created a rematch in what was a highly intense one game to 30 final, required by the lack of available gym time at 6:30 pm, which was won 30-28 by Power Surge 18's.

If team chemistry accounts for anything, this should be a great team to watch!