Sierra’s historic season came to a heartbreaking end Thursday.
The second-seeded Timberwolves were stunned in the quarterfinal round of the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III playoffs, as battle-hardened No. 10 seed Lincoln staved off match point in the third set and came from behind for a 13-25, 17-25, 26-24, 25-22, 15-12.
The first two games were won decisively by Sierra (24-5), but the Fighting Zebras (20-8) from Placer County showed some fight in leading for much of the third. Sierra trailed 21-16 but rallied to match point after Zoe Kossart blasted one of 18 kills. A service error tied it at 24-24, and Lincoln standout Jordyn Deter sealed it for her team with a kill.
It was Deter who fittingly ended the match with her 29th kill.
“I think we were just very ahead of ourselves,” Kossart said. “We were like, ‘OK, we’re going to win.’ First set, set we destroyed them. Second set, we let them come back but we were still able to stay ahead. I think maybe we got a little too complacent. We just weren’t consistent enough.”
Sierra seemed to regain its earlier form in the fourth set, jumping out to a 12-6 lead. Lincoln answered with a six unanswered points, with Deter adding two more kills and Hannah Wilder scoring an ace.
Deter landed a set dump for game point. Kossart tallied back-to-back kills to keep the Timberwolves in the hunt, the second of which was set up by a rare kick save from Ciara Castro (15 digs, five aces). The comeback fizzled out after a missed opportunity, as an overpass from Lincoln was misplayed at the net.
Going into game 5, it was Lincoln’s match to lose.
“I think that it’s all about momentum,” Sierra coach Kim Ellis said. “They were playing very strategically, attacking any weaknesses they felt we may have and we let them establish momentum.”
Sierra led 3-1 following an ace from Kossart in the deciding set, but the Fighting Zebras took over after Deter’s block knotted it at 3-3. Avery Larson fired two straight aces, and Deter dealt another kill to create separation.
Sierra momentarily scrapped its way back into the match and even tied it, 11-11, when Abigail Chapman and Becca Thomson combined for a block. Deter once again came through with another big kill to grab the lead back for Lincoln, and minutes later she provided the knockout blow.
“I had no doubt she going to be able to do that,” Lincoln coach Anthony Lontayao said. “I knew that she had it in her. There was some fatigue with her and everyone, but they did it on Tuesday and I knew they could do it again. As long as we had the opportunities, I trust in them to take it home for us.”
Lincoln also knocked off No. 7 Vanden in fifth games Tuesday and will next take its Cinderella act to No. 3 Christian Brothers (22-9) in the semifinals. It will be a rematch of last year Division III championship match.
Although the Fighting Zebras are the defending champions, they lost much of their talent from last season. Deter is one of two top returners — the other being junior middle Mallory Kuehl — from Lincoln’s 30-3 team that earned an Open Division invite in the state playoffs.
Lincoln participated in the Nike Tournament of Champions in Arizona Sept. 30-Oct. 1 and went 6-1 in winning its bracket. Lontayao said that experience helped bring this current group together.
The Fighting Zebras arrived at Sierra about a half hour before the start of the match because of traffic, but Lontayao said his team remained unfazed.
“After that fourth set, they just went off experience and leadership, and it’s been like that all season,” he said. “I trust in them. We had a tough preseason and had some losses, but it shows now we are able to work through some things.”
For Sierra, this marks the end of a milestone campaign in which it ran the table for its first-ever Valley Oak League championship and won its first postseason match. The quarterfinal defeat denies the Timberwolves their first appearance in the NorCal tournament, but with their front-row talent returning next year they’re hoping to have another shot at it.
“I am extremely proud,” Kossart said. “We came in here with the expectation that we’re not going to do very much, and then to make history by taking VOL, winning and hosting a playoff match — it was just so fun to experience all these firsts with this strong group of girls.
“I’m really excited for next year. Now, the goal is to win the second round and get to the final four. I’m definitely more motivated knowing how this feels. We had eye on the prize, so to feel this defeat I’m way more determined for next year.”
Thomson, Sierra’s fourth-year senior setter, 46 assists, five kills, 11 digs and three aces in her final high school match. Senior libero Jenna Dalen finished with 37 digs and five assists.
Kossart, a junior outside hitter, tallied 20 digs and five aces to go with her team-high kill total. Alexandra Chapman contributed 11 kills, Abigail Chapman had eight kills and six blocks and Sophia Marian chipped in five kills and seven aces.
“They’ve grown so much as individuals and as a team,” Ellis said. “The seniors, in their first year didn’t get to make the playoffs and barely won a few games. Then we hit COVID the next year, and last year we made the playoffs at a lower seed. This year, we went undefeated, took VOLs and won our first playoff match. … I’m so proud of these girls.”
