XC swept Selah and Othello in the CWAC opener on Thursday, while volleyball fell to Toppenish on Tuesday.
Updated
Bergen Lauver (11) goes up at the net against Toppenish. Lauver finished with nine combined blocks. Photos by Casey Devine
Volleyball
EPHRATA — The Lady Tigers took the first set 25-17, but couldn't hold momentum, falling in the next three to Toppenish, 11-25, 23-25, 15-25 on Sept. 22 in the conference opener at home.
Sophomore Addison Vasquez led Ephrata with 14 kills, and Navi Kaur and Sidney Chornuk added eight apiece. Ella Piturachsatit set the offensive pace with 25 assists and served a team-high four aces, part of an 11-ace night for the Tigers. Chornuk anchored the defense with 17 digs, and Vasquez added five.
Addison Vasquez (7) swings against the Toppenish block. Vasquez led Ephrata with 14 kills.
Bergen Lauver was a force at the net with nine blocks, seven of them solo. Clairissa Johnson added six, and Vasquez and Piturachsatit had five apiece.
With the loss, Ephrata fell to 2-6 on the season while the visiting Wildcats improved to 4-1.
The week before, Ephrata dropped a Sept. 17 home match to Prosser in straight sets, 25-18, 25-18, 25-9.
The Tigers went 2-3 at their own 16-team tournament on Sept. 19. Ephrata opened pool play with a loss to Brewster, beat Colville and fell to Tri-Cities Prep, then won its silver bracket opener over Wahluke before losing to Omak in the semifinals. Tournament matches do not count toward the season record.
Ella Piturachsatit (12) sends up a set during Ephrata's loss to Toppenish. She finished with 25 assists and four aces.
Ephrata travels to Quincy this Saturday, Sept. 26 for another 16-team tournament beginning at 8 a.m. The Tigers open pool play against Goldendale before facing Wilbur-Creston-Keller and Naches Valley later in the day.
OTHELLO — The Ephrata girls produced an impressive 1-2-3-4 finish to beat Selah 19-36 Thursday in a cross country meet at the Othello Golf Club. The Tiger boys also won their side with 27 points to Selah's 48 and host Othello's 59.
Othello cheerleaders cheer on runners at the start of the girls race Thursday at the Othello Golf Club. Ephrata took the first four places and beat Selah 19-36.
Senior Abigail Chamberlain clocked a time of 18 minutes, 15.3 seconds over the 3-mile course to win the girls race. Tiger teammate Savannah Harper took second at 19:29.9, followed by junior Rebecca Wiser in 19:35.0 and freshman Zoie Grubb in 19:43.6. Senior Hannah Malone was ninth in 20:32.3 to round out the top-five scoring for Ephrata.
Selah's Leah Norman was the first non-Tiger to cross the finish line, placing fifth overall in 20:07.9.
The Lady Tigers are ranked No. 8 in the 2A state coaches poll for the week of Sept. 21. Ironically, Selah is listed at No. 7 in the poll.
In the boys race, Ephrata junior Caleb Fitts had a strong showing with his winning time of 14:55.8, outpacing runner-up Pavlo Rodriguez of Selah by 85 seconds. Two spots back, Tiger freshman Seve Molitor placed fourth in 16:25.2 closely followed by teammate sophomore Caleb Schooler, fifth in 16:27.7.
The Ephrata boys warm up before their race Thursday at Othello Golf Club. The Tigers won with 27 points to Selah's 48 and Othello's 59.
Senior Grant Adams was eighth in 16:47.3 and freshman Mike Jimenez ninth in 16:50.3 to complete Ephrata's scoring.
This Saturday, the Tigers travel to The Course in Spokane Valley for a 5K race at the Nike Bob Firman Invitational, one of the premier high school cross country competitions in the nation.
In an advance message to coaches, meet director Ryan Canning said the invite has drawn 3,229 registered athletes. The field includes 2,892 high school runners from 115 schools in 10 states and one Canadian province, plus 337 youth athletes on 24 teams from four states and one province.
The upcoming meet is making its debut in Washington state after being hosted for years in the Boise area. Built specifically for running competitions, the Course Spokane Valley opened in August. Saturday's high school races are 5-kilometer events beginning at 8:45 a.m. and continuing into the afternoon.
Tiger head coach Lyndsy Roberts expects the crowded field and talent level will provide his runners with "a taste of the state meet" intensity, and believes the exposure will pay off in the postseason later this fall.
Boys — Ephrata 27, Selah 48, Othello 59
Team
Scoring places
Pts
Ephrata
1
4
5
8
9
27
Selah
2
3
12
15
16
48
Othello
6
7
13
14
19
59
Ephrata — 1. Caleb Fitts 14:55.8; 4. Seve Molitor 16:25.2; 5. Caleb Schooler 16:27.7; 8. Grant Adams 16:47.3; 9. Mike Jimenez 16:50.3; 10. Ryan Delgado 16:53.9; 11. Louden Leenhouts 17:04.6.
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Volleyball drops conference opener to Toppenish; Tiger XC sweeps Selah, Othello
XC swept Selah and Othello in the CWAC opener on Thursday, while volleyball fell to Toppenish on Tuesday.
Volleyball
EPHRATA — The Lady Tigers took the first set 25-17, but couldn't hold momentum, falling in the next three to Toppenish, 11-25, 23-25, 15-25 on Sept. 22 in the conference opener at home.
Sophomore Addison Vasquez led Ephrata with 14 kills, and Navi Kaur and Sidney Chornuk added eight apiece. Ella Piturachsatit set the offensive pace with 25 assists and served a team-high four aces, part of an 11-ace night for the Tigers. Chornuk anchored the defense with 17 digs, and Vasquez added five.
Bergen Lauver was a force at the net with nine blocks, seven of them solo. Clairissa Johnson added six, and Vasquez and Piturachsatit had five apiece.
With the loss, Ephrata fell to 2-6 on the season while the visiting Wildcats improved to 4-1.
The week before, Ephrata dropped a Sept. 17 home match to Prosser in straight sets, 25-18, 25-18, 25-9.
The Tigers went 2-3 at their own 16-team tournament on Sept. 19. Ephrata opened pool play with a loss to Brewster, beat Colville and fell to Tri-Cities Prep, then won its silver bracket opener over Wahluke before losing to Omak in the semifinals. Tournament matches do not count toward the season record.
Ephrata travels to Quincy this Saturday, Sept. 26 for another 16-team tournament beginning at 8 a.m. The Tigers open pool play against Goldendale before facing Wilbur-Creston-Keller and Naches Valley later in the day.
Toppenish 3, Ephrata 1
Ephrata — Kills: Vasquez 14, Kaur 8, Chornuk 8. Assists: Piturachsatit 25. Aces: Piturachsatit 4, Vasquez 2, Lauver 2. Digs: Chornuk 17, Vasquez 5. Blocks: Lauver 9 (7 solo), Johnson 6.
Cross Country
OTHELLO — The Ephrata girls produced an impressive 1-2-3-4 finish to beat Selah 19-36 Thursday in a cross country meet at the Othello Golf Club. The Tiger boys also won their side with 27 points to Selah's 48 and host Othello's 59.
Senior Abigail Chamberlain clocked a time of 18 minutes, 15.3 seconds over the 3-mile course to win the girls race. Tiger teammate Savannah Harper took second at 19:29.9, followed by junior Rebecca Wiser in 19:35.0 and freshman Zoie Grubb in 19:43.6. Senior Hannah Malone was ninth in 20:32.3 to round out the top-five scoring for Ephrata.
Selah's Leah Norman was the first non-Tiger to cross the finish line, placing fifth overall in 20:07.9.
The Lady Tigers are ranked No. 8 in the 2A state coaches poll for the week of Sept. 21. Ironically, Selah is listed at No. 7 in the poll.
In the boys race, Ephrata junior Caleb Fitts had a strong showing with his winning time of 14:55.8, outpacing runner-up Pavlo Rodriguez of Selah by 85 seconds. Two spots back, Tiger freshman Seve Molitor placed fourth in 16:25.2 closely followed by teammate sophomore Caleb Schooler, fifth in 16:27.7.
Senior Grant Adams was eighth in 16:47.3 and freshman Mike Jimenez ninth in 16:50.3 to complete Ephrata's scoring.
This Saturday, the Tigers travel to The Course in Spokane Valley for a 5K race at the Nike Bob Firman Invitational, one of the premier high school cross country competitions in the nation.
In an advance message to coaches, meet director Ryan Canning said the invite has drawn 3,229 registered athletes. The field includes 2,892 high school runners from 115 schools in 10 states and one Canadian province, plus 337 youth athletes on 24 teams from four states and one province.
The upcoming meet is making its debut in Washington state after being hosted for years in the Boise area. Built specifically for running competitions, the Course Spokane Valley opened in August. Saturday's high school races are 5-kilometer events beginning at 8:45 a.m. and continuing into the afternoon.
Tiger head coach Lyndsy Roberts expects the crowded field and talent level will provide his runners with "a taste of the state meet" intensity, and believes the exposure will pay off in the postseason later this fall.
Boys — Ephrata 27, Selah 48, Othello 59
Ephrata — 1. Caleb Fitts 14:55.8; 4. Seve Molitor 16:25.2; 5. Caleb Schooler 16:27.7; 8. Grant Adams 16:47.3; 9. Mike Jimenez 16:50.3; 10. Ryan Delgado 16:53.9; 11. Louden Leenhouts 17:04.6.
Girls — Ephrata 19, Selah 36
Ephrata — 1. Abigail Chamberlain 18:15.3; 2. Savannah Harper 19:29.9; 3. Rebecca Wiser 19:35.0; 4. Zoie Grubb 19:43.6; 9. Hannah Malone 20:32.3; 18. Gracee Neff 22:11.3; 21. Eden Morris 22:54.1.