RAYMOND — After four sets in their district semifinal against Forks, the Vikings headed to their bench.
Early on, they seemed poised to sweep the Spartans, but now they had just a few minutes to reset before playing a fifth set.
Mossyrock coach Alex Nelson had a simple message.
“Give to your team,” Nelson said. “Trusting the process, wanting the ball, supporting your teammates, celebrating your teammates. All those little things that can’t be measured but make a huge impact on the game.”
The Vikings did all the little things and more in the fifth and final set, winning it to survive a furious Forks rally in a 25-20, 25-8, 27-29, 23-25, 15-9 victory that put them through to the district title game and through to the state tournament.
“If we do those things, we’ll have the outcome that we saw,” Nelson said. “I’m very proud of them.”
Early on, the Vikings could do little wrong. They trailed for much of the first set, but rallied late to win it, and then they rolled in the second to a comfortable win.
Even when things seemed to be going south in set three, Mossyrock thwarted off six consecutive match points to force extra points, and it held a 26-25 lead of its own.
That’s where the Vikings started to struggle, as the Spartans finished the set strong and then overcame an 18-14 deficit in the fourth set to force a fifth.
“We had some errors,” Nelson said. “We didn’t always put it away.”
Mossyrock got the momentum back with a 9-1 run in the middle of the fifth, and Chesney Schultz sent the Vikings back to state with a kill.
“Showing that resolve in game five when you have an opportunity to go to state is huge,” Nelson said. “I’m very proud of them.”
Schultz finished with a team-high 12 kills, while Saydi Mendoza added 10 and Kendall Cournyer added four. Erin Cournyer finished with 35 assists, Taylor Schwartz led the Vikings with 48 digs, and Adyson Barrows led the team at the service line with four aces.
With their state tournament berth secured, Mossyrock will now have the chance to play for its fifth consecutive district title across 2B (2019) and 1B (2021-23).
To win, they’ll have to defeat the top-ranked, unbeaten Adna Pirates, who are going for their second straight 2B District 4 title. Mossyrock is one of just two teams who has taken Adna to five sets this season, the other being Manson, the 2023 2B state champion.
“They’re a very tough team,” Nelson said. “We’ve played with them before, and we just want to compete … I’m happy to go to state again.”
