The Coupeville High School volleyball team put the finishes touches on its regular season with a 3-0 win over visiting Port Townsend Thursday, Oct. 29, and now heads to the district tournament.

The win lifted the Wolves (3-3, 5-9) into a second-place tie with Chimacum (3-3, 8-8) in the final Olympic League standings. Klahowya (6-0, 9-6) captured the title; Port Townsend finished 0-6, 1-11.

Coupeville coach Breanne Smedley said after the Port Townsend match that the tie-breaking criteria to determine whether the Wolves would be the second or third seed into the district tournament has not been determined.

The No. 3 seed hosts a play-in, loser-out match with the Nisqually League No. 4 team (either Seattle Christian or Bellevue Christian) Tuesday, Nov. 3. That winner travels to the Nisqually League’s No. 2 team, Cascade Christian, Thursday, Nov. 5, for another loser-out match.

The Olympic League’s No. 2 team plays a loser-out match at home against the No. 3 Nisqually team (either Seattle Christian or Bellevue Christian) Thursday.

None of the starting times have been set.

Regardless which seed Coupeville receives, it will host a playoff match for the first time since 2004.

Before the Port Townsend match, Coupeville honored its two seniors, Sydney Autio and McKenzie Bailey. After the ceremony, the Wolves came from behind in two of the three games to pull out the 25-20, 25-13, 26-24 win.

The Cowboys raced to a 13-4 lead in the first set.

Valen Trujillo took over service for the Wolves and helped Coupeville score 11 consecutive points with six aces. Payton Aparicio and Katrina McGranahan added kills during the run to put the Wolves up 15-13.

Behind two aces from Hope Lodell and kills from McGranahan and Bailey, Coupeville put the Cowboys away.

The Wolves were never threatened in the second set, which included three aces by Lauren Rose, two from Maddy Hilkey and kills from Bailey, McGranahan and Tiffany Briscoe.

Chimacum built a 17-10 lead in the final game in spite of three kills by Kyla Briscoe.

From that point, the Wolves inched their way back into the game.

The Cowboys held game point at 24-20, but two aces from Aparicio and two kills by Tiffany Briscoe carried the Wolves to the win.

Smedley said her team is doing a better job of battling back after falling behind, overcoming some of the mental issues that plagued the club earlier in the year.

“I just don’t like that they put themselves in that situation,” she added.

“They are coming together, jelling,” she said.

Smedley lauded the play of Aparicio, who was “very consistent.”

Aparicio finished with four kills and three aces. Trujillo had six aces and five digs, Lauren Rose was 13-for-13 serving and Tiffany Briscoe added seven kills with no hitting errors.

(Top: MaKenzie Bailey goes on the attack. Below: Ally Roberts passes. Photos by John Fisken.)