LAKEWOOD -- Yakima Valley continued its hot streak in impressive fashion at the NWAC tournament Friday afternoon.
The Yaks took control early in all three sets to sweep Highline 25-19, 25-17, 25-15 and win their eighth straight match advance to Saturday's semifinals for the second straight season. McKenna Steiner recorded a double-double with 17 kills and 11 digs while Kaitlyn Leaverton just missed one with 15 kills and eight digs as both of them posted a hitting percentage higher than .470.
"I don't think they could ever get going, actually," coach Darci Dekker said. "I think we attacked them with their serve and they could never get in system and we stayed strong and true to who we are and what we do."
She said the team's returning to full health at just the right time to prove last year's unexpected run by a team that lost six league matches wasn't a fluke. YVC's won 9 of 10 matches since freshman Kalilyn Gomez returned from injury to play setter along with first team all-NWAC East selection Joleen Jaeger, which allows the Yaks to utilize more valuable size up front.
Yakima Valley's defense held Highline to a .116 hitting percentage, thanks in part to a team-high 12 digs by Ellensburg graduate Aubrey Tornow, who's taken on a bigger role as the team's full-time libero since an injury sidelined Mia Carlson. Payton Childers assisted on five of the Yaks' six blocks while they only lost more than two points in a row twice the entire match.
They also reeled off several runs of their own, starting with seven of eight points to open up a 16-8 first set lead. A 5-0 run capped off by a Tornow ace erased a two-point lead and put the Yaks ahead for good in the final set.
No. 1 Linn-Benton, the three-time defending champions, will await Yakima Valley in Saturday's first semifinal, set for 2 p.m. The Roadrunners have only been pushed to a fifth set nine times during their current 88-match win streak, including a regional championship matchup against the Yaks last season.
YVC highlights: Kalilyn Gomez 16 assts, 8 digs; Ana Hrle 4 digs, 2 kills; Grace Hadaller 4 kills, 2 digs; Aubrey Tornow 12 digs, asst; Ailianna Quaempts 2 kills, 2 digs; Kaitlyn Leaverton 15 kills, 8 digs; Payton Childers 6 kills, 2.5 blks, dig; McKenna Steiner 17 kills, 11 digs; Joleen Jaeger 25 assts, 8 digs.