3A STATE: Truckee, Yerington set up all-North final
Yerington’s girls volleyball team is 0-for-3 against rival Truckee this season.
The Lions will get another chance to knock off the Wolverines in a big way Saturday.
Makenna Lommori had 16 assists, eight kills and four blocks to lead Yerington (29-5) to a 25-16, 25-7, 25-15 sweep of Boulder City in a Class 3A state semifinal Friday at Silverado.
The three-time defending state champion Lions will meet Truckee (22-1) for the state title at 2 p.m. Saturday. It’s the third straight season the teams have met for the championship.
“It’s fun,” Yerington coach Anna Aiazzi said of the rivalry. “We know each other well, and we know what we have to do against each other.”
Brooke Aiazzi had eight digs and four kills for Yerington, which was never seriously threatened. At one point in the second game, the Lions led 23-4.
“We didn’t come to play tonight,” Boulder City coach Cherise Roe said. “The girls just couldn’t get the momentum on their side.
“I knew Yerington would be a strong team, but I expected to have a better showing than we did.”
Lyzette Aguilar had 10 digs for Yerington. Taylor Thomas and Alexandra Roberts added four kills each.
“We’ve been working on blocking, and it definitely showed tonight,” said Anna Aiazzi, whose team totaled 14 blocks. “At times we play inconsistent, so we’ve been working on getting the girls mentally tough.”
Paxton Fleming dished out 12 assists for Boulder City (22-9). Kelsey Ripplinger had 16 digs, and Emily Boyster contributed three kills and three blocks.
Truckee sweeps Virgin Valley
Annie Reiswig and Merry Brown have been leading the way for Truckee all season.
So it was no surprise the duo carried the Wolverines into the 3A state final.
Reiswig and Brown had 13 kills each to lift Truckee to a 25-23, 25-10, 25-15 sweep of Virgin Valley (14-15) in a semifinal at Silverado.
“They’re solid,” Truckee coach Nicole Annaloro said. “Merry’s got a hit that’s tough to read, so it’s hard for teams to block her. Annie’s just diverse in her hitting.”
Senior middle hitter Brown also had four aces.
Jillian Akers dished out 24 assists and Kaylee Waters had 11 digs for Truckee, which wasn’t threatened in the second or third games.
“I knew we could do better than we did in game one,” Annaloro said. “We started playing our caliber of play. We relaxed a little. It’s natural to be kind of amped.”
The Wolverines jumped to an 11-3 lead in the second game and an 11-1 lead in the third.
“Our level of intensity dropped, but we didn’t quit,” Virgin Valley coach Lori Barnum said.
Virgin Valley’s Annie Biasi and Madison Bowler had six kills and two aces apiece.
Rachel Morris had five kills and Nikki Hafen added 13 assists for the Bulldogs, who will lose only two seniors to graduation.
“I thought that Truckee was more experienced in this arena than we were,” Barnum said.
