Oak Harbor High School volleyball coach Kerri Molitor probably discovered a few more gray hairs when she looked in the mirror Wednesday morning. The previous evening her Wildcat team squeaked out a nerve-racking 3-2 win over visiting Marysville Getchell.
Oak Harbor took a commanding 2-0 lead with 25-18, 25-20 wins in the first two sets and looked primed for a sweep.
The Chargers had other ideas, winning the third and fourth sets (25-22, 25-18) to force a fifth game.
The Wildcats prevailed 15-11.
The win evened Oak Harbor’s records at 2-2 and 3-3. Getchell fell to 1-3, 1-5.
Two aces by Cami Bristow and a tip and kill from Julie Jansen helped the Wildcats close out the first game.
The Wildcats fell behind 5-2 in the second game, tied the game at 6 (sparked by tips from Cierra Dean and Bristow) and pull away from there.
The Chargers built a 20-14 lead in game two, then the Wildcats went on an 8-1 run (getting blocks from Jansen and Hailee Blau) to grab the lead, 22-21. Getchell recovered and scored the set’s final four points.
With the score tied at 6 in the fourth game, the Chargers slowly built a lead on the way to their win.
The fifth set was tied at 9, then Oak Harbor muscled its way to victory. During the final spurt, Jansen recorded two blocks, Dean served an ace and Samantha Hines pounded a kill.
Blau finished the night with 17 kills and four blocks; Bristow added eight kills, three aces and 20 digs; Jansen collected six kills and five blocks; Dean had two aces and 17 digs; Lauren May chipped in with two aces and 16 digs; and Andrea Ruben had 44 assists and 10 digs.
Oak Harbor hosts Snohomish (2-1, 2-3) at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 3.
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In the top photo below, Oak Harbor’s Kirstina Tirado, left, and Julie Jansen block a Getchell hit. Below, Samantha Hines, right, tips for a point for the Wildcats. Photos by John Fisken.