Henkle spikers find road wins hard to come by

"If you missed this match, you missed a great one," said Coach Mindy Rude. "We were so happy for this tough victory and everyone played their best."

Henkle's blended 7/8 Black No. 3 squad lost the first two sets, 15-5 and 15-12, but won the rally point finale 15-13.

"The girls had a tough time getting started," Rude noted, "but after the first game they played great."

The all-seventh-grade White squad also fell at Hockinson, a team Coach Kathy Gilderhus called one of the two best in Henkle's league, the Lower Columbia Middle School Activities Association.

Kelsey Kidd led the Grizzlies in scoring. Kidd, Ashley Poole, Bronda Middleton and Eloise Zimbelman all served 100 percent.

Hockinson beat Henkle 15-7, 15-4, 15-2 in the eighth-grade matchup.

Coach Lori Owen said the scores didn't reflect how well the Grizzlies played. "The only problem we had was the very hard serves that dropped right into the middle. We're going to move our defense around to cover the short middle better."

Henkle at View Ridge:

Henkle sent three squads to Ridgefield on Oct. 2. The trip resulted in three losses for the Grizzlies.

Henkle's eighth-graders lost two of three to their counterparts, 15-9, 15-5. They won the third set 15-10.

Coach Owen said it was the best she'd seen this team play. She praised Megan Shinn's play at the net and the serving of Dani Gilderhus and Ashley Neff.

According to Coach Gilderhus, White Salmon's seventh-graders went down in defeat against a highly competitive Ridgefield unit. Katie Johnson was the top scorer, while Rebecca Wellman, Chani Weiler and Eloise Zimbelman were all perfect from the service line.

The blended Black No. 1 team salvaged a win in the rally point set of its match, 15-13. Ridgefield clinched the match by winning the first two sets, 15-12, 15-6.

Noted Coach Rude: "The team played well, despite the loss. The girls moved and hustled for all the balls."