Aloha, Cedarcrest.
The Oak Harbor High School volleyball team, spurred by a Hawaiian Night theme and a large home crowd draped in floral patterns, whipped the Red Wolves 3-0 Tuesday, Sept. 17.
The Wildcats won 25-16, 25-18, 25-17.
Oak Harbor is one of only five of the 15 Western Conference 3A/2A teams still unbeaten just two matches into the season. Cedarcrest slipped to 0-2.
Oak Harbor coach Kerri Molitor said giving each home match a theme provides the players and crowd with “something extra.”
Next up is Tie-dye Night when the Wildcats host Shorecrest (1-1) at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 19.
All three games with Cedarcrest followed a similar pattern. The Red Wolves reached 8 points first, then the Wildcats pulled away.
In the opening set, Oak Harbor trailed 8-7 before going on an 8-1 run, fueled by three kills from Morgan Pease.
Up 15-11, the Wildcats scored five straight points to take control. Pease added two more kills and Gredina DeGuzman fired a pair of aces during the rally.
The Red Wolves jumped to an 8-3 advantage in the second game. Getting two kills from Leielle Salinger, one each from Annie Salinger and Payton Parks and an ace from Jaslin Webster helped Oak Harbor knot the set a 11.
Four kills from Leielle Salinger led a 5-1 run, and the Wildcats never looked back.
In game three, Oak Harbor trailed 6-2 before eventually tying the set a 8 with help of two kills from Pease and one each from Leielle Salinger and Jasmine Ford.
From there, the Wildcats steadily pulled away.
Molitor, responding to the slow starts in each game, said, “We had trouble coming together and focusing. We are working on ignoring the distractions.”
Molitor noted that Parks “played well” and efficiently. The sophomore middle had nine kills in 17 attacks with no errors. She also had a block.
Molitor added that setter Annie Salinger, who finished with 35 assists, “worked really hard because our passing wasn’t all that great.”
Pease, the team’s top offensive threat, “had a good defensive night,” Molitor said. The junior collected 16 digs and two blocks to go along with 16 kills.
Leielle Salinger recorded 12 kills, five digs and two aces, and Webster registered 15 digs.
Leielle Salinger goes on the attack for Oak Harbor. (Photo by John Fisken)
Morgan Pease registers one of her 16 kills. (Photo by John Fisken)
Jaslin Webser gets the offense going with a pass. (Photo by John Fisken)
Lacey Zylstra hits in Tuesday’s match with Cedarcrest. (Photo by John Fisken)
Payton Parks collects a kill for the Wildcats. (Photo by John Fisken)
