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Comets hitting their groove By Danny Penza Updated: Oct 29, 2022 09:08 PM A A 13 View all photos Third-seeded Crater advances to 5A state tournament with another straight-set win Coming off a Midwestern League campaign full of nothing but straight-set sweeps, the Crater volleyball team entered the Class 5A state playoffs with plenty of wind in their sails. So much so that things looked a lot like they did in the regular season Saturday. Behind another big performance from star outside hitters Kendra Bittle and Maddie Kocina, third-seeded Crater was able to shake off a slow start and rolled to a 25-17, 25-19, 25-10 win over No. 14 Dallas in the opening round of the 5A state playoffs at Scenic Middle School in Central Point. “We started off real slow, we had some shanks and weren’t serve-receiving really well,” Crater head coach Leaf Jensen said. “Again, like always this season, we’re just a mismatch. Dallas had a big, legitimate 6-foot-2 middle (Erin Eriksen), but I think our block got to her a bit. She just tipped all night long, she didn’t really swing away a whole lot and our blockers did a nice job fronting her.” With the win, the Comets (19-4) advanced to their first state tournament since 2018, where they will face sixth-seeded La Salle Prep (19-4) — which beat No. 11 Summit 25-22, 25-22, 25-23 on Saturday — in the quarterfinals at 3:15 p.m. Friday, with semifinal matches set for later that night in Forest Grove. Four years ago, Crater was also the No. 3 seed at the 5A state tournament but ended up with a sixth-place finish. Jensen, who was the Comets’ coach in 2018 before stepping away, likes his team’s chances as they head north to Forest Grove. “I feel confident, without question,” said Jensen. “In all honesty, as I was telling somebody earlier this week, I’ve watched film on pretty much every team in the state and I would much rather be watching their film than watching our film because I feel pretty good. We have the potential, we have the drive, we have the focus and we are peaking at the right time. We are expecting big things next week.” Kocina finished with a team-best 15 kills, 15 digs and chipped in a pair of aces and a block. Bittle wasn’t too far behind with 13 kills, four digs and a pair of blocks. Kate Stidham recorded 38 assists, 13 digs, two aces and three blocks. Alexa Gugliotta added seven kills and three blocks. Earlier in the week, the 6-foot-2 Bittle announced that she had verbally committed to play collegiately at Corban University in Salem. “Between the two of them they had just six hitting errors all night and 28 kills,” said Jensen of Bittle and Kocina. “They were just on fire. Kendra has so much power and when she gets that ball lined up — and we’ve been speeding up our offense — she is just unstoppable. Maddie jumps so high and hits such sharp angles, that duo is just so tough. You dig in for Kendra and then you have to be light on your feet for Maddie because she can take it and turn it in any direction. They’re just a handful to deal with for anybody.” That was on display from the very beginning, as Kocina and Bittle recorded kills to close out the first set. Bittle was at it again early in the second set, as her loud kill straight down into an open spot put Crater up 5-3. From there, the Comets’ lead only grew larger, as they extended it to 8-3 with five straight points. The Comets made it 14-9 thanks to a pair of great digs from junior libero Joslyhn Pope to keep the rally alive before Gugliotta’s tip over finished the point. After the third set was tied at 6-all early, the Comets were able to put the Dragons (9-11) away for good, recording 11 of the next 12 points to build a 17-7 lead. “They were tipping and chipping trying to get around our big block and we were picking up everything,” said Jensen. “They just couldn’t put a ball away for a stretch.” Defense and serve-receive was one of the things that Jensen wanted to see improvement on early in the season. Now, as the Comets head to the 5A state tournament, the effort from Pope — who finished with 10 digs — is leading a defensive revival of sorts. “When you get one person who plays that hard, it makes everybody else play hard because you don’t want to look lazy,” Jensen said of Pope. “It’s contagious and it has absolutely been our key — balls are not falling on a good third of the court that she’s covering, they’re just not. Her serve-receive has been fantastic. We’re all just kind of clicking at the right time, but Joslyhn’s play has been inspirational.” Reach reporter Danny Penza at 541-776-4469 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @penzatopaper. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Volleyball team celebrate during the match against Dallas at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Kendra Bittle attempting to drive the ball past Dallas defenders at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Kate Stidham (2) sets the ball, between teammates Lanie Snow (13) and Kendra Bittle (4) at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Madison Kocina watches her spiked ball over the net, during the match against Dallas at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Kate Stidham (2) and Alexa Gugliotta attempt to get the block on Dallas High's Brooke Van Well at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Kate Stidham sets the ball in front of Dallas defenders teammate Madison Kocina at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Madison Kocina attempting to slam the ball past Dallas defenders at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Danica Huntoon looking to slam the ball between Dallas defenders Olivia Hale (7) and Hannah Callaway (8), with the Crater bench looking on, at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Kate Stidham sets the ball, between Dallas defenders and teammate Lanie Snow at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Madison Kocina slams the ball against Dallas at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Alexa Gugliotta (10) looking to slam the ball past Dallas defenders, while teammates look on, at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Madison Kocina slams the ball against Dallas at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday. PHOTO BY: LARRY STAUTH JRCrater High's Danica Huntoon attempting to slam the ball past Dallas defenders, as teammates look on, at Scenic Middle School Gym on Saturday.