Cle Elum grabs an upset

Royal faces Warden in loser-out match Saturday

BURBANK - All expectation was lost while Cle Elum was found cheering after a five game up set over Royal.

The Knights' Sarah Anderson fell to the floor, put her hands over her face as her kill attempt hit short on the net and painted the picture Royal felt after the Warriors upset the No. 2 seed from the SCAC East.

Royal blew a lead in the fourth and fifth games in a Cle Elum momentum shift, resulting in the Warriors' 3-2 (25-11, 20-25, 19-25, 25-23, 15-13) win at the SCAC district tournament.

"We never played," Royal head coach Paul Olsufka said describing the night's happenings. "It wasn't like we played at all."

Paul Olsufka said the first game of the match left Royal stunned, but made a strong showing that resulted in the Knights' next two wins. Where things went wrong was Royal's inability to finish off the Warriors when it counted.

Starting with game four.

After Royal swung momentum in the second and third games, both teams battled for the fourth where the lead changed sides three times, finally favoring Cle Elum.

The Warriors built an 11-10 lead over the Knights, but two hits by Joelle Herrud and Anderson from the service line put Royal in a position to clinch the match.

Trailing 18-15, Staci Schrader's serve for the Warriors got help from Royal's inability to find a point. Shaina Allred hit into the net, Carly Jansen hit the ball twice as Cle Elum tied the game at 18-18.

Royal followed suit with a run of its own, but Cle Elum never caved and eventually pulled off the 25-23 win.

Then in game five, the Knights built an 11-3 lead, needing only four points to close out the game and preserve the win. Both sides took shots at the other and Cle Elum chipped away, trailing 13-7.

Alisha Bator then led the Warriors from the service line, while Monique Bocchetti took control of the net, nailing two kills and a block, leading to Anderson's missed kill to end the game at 15-13 in favor of Cle Elum and handing them a 3-2 overall win.

"They came and got us, bottom line, they played better," Olusfka said.

But Olsufka and company wasn't expecting the five-game series. The last time the two teams met, Royal came out on top in a close sweep.

The loss means Royal is in a loser-out situation in the SCAC district playoffs with the top four teams out of eight heading to the state tournament. On Saturday, Royal will face Warden, whom they have defeated twice already this season.

Yet this time, the focus has changed for the Knights.

"Now we have to put the pressure on and the pressure is there, we lose we are out," Olsufka said. "A few of my seniors took this game a little hard tonight and hopefully they will spark this group of girls."