Olympic League standings

(as of Oct. 18)

Team Lg.                Over.

North Kitsap 7-0      8-1

Bremerton 5-4         7-4

Kingston 5-4            7-5

Sequim 5-4            6-5

Olympic 4-4             5-6

Port Angeles 3-6       3-7

North Mason 0-8       1-10

by MICHAEL DASHIELL

Sequim Gazette

Sequim’s volleyball squad is on a streak — one they’d like to end before the postseason begins.

The Wolves dropped a pair of Olympic League games last week after holding one-set leads in both, further muddying the playoff picture as five teams vie for four remaining playoff spots behind league leader North Kitsap.

KO’d by Kingston

On Oct. 13, a solid start didn’t last long in a four-set Sequim loss to Kingston at home.

The Wolves took game one 25-21 but dropped the next three, 25-20, 25-20 and 25-18.

“We were flat,” Sequim coach Jennie Webber Heilman said. “It’s like we were in their gym, not our own gym.”

Megan Breckenridge led the team with eight kills and 15 digs, Sydney Balkan had a team-high 12 assists while teammates Ella Christianson and Maddie Potts had two blocks apiece, but it wasn’t enough.

“We just weren’t doing smart thing; our mission was to get the ball to (their) setter,” Webber Heilman said. “We did it well against Bremerton (on Oct. 6) but we just can’t pass their serves. We missed that first serve a lot. That sets the tone. We’re just struggling.”

Sequim missed just eight of 80 serves but they came at crucial times, Webber Heilman said.

“We also needed more effective blocking,” she said.

Christianson and Lillian Oden were both 11-for-11 serving with two aces, and libero McKenzie Bentz had 11 digs.

Riders ride out a win

On Oct. 15, Sequim rebounded from a tough first-set loss to go up 2-1, but dropped the final two sets to host Port Angeles in a must-win match for the Roughriders.

Port Angeles edged Sequim 26-24, 16-25, 16-25, 25-18 and 15-12.

“We were missing too many serves and making unforced errors … PA caught up and won (in the first game),” Webber Heilman said. “We played better the next two games, made more of our serves. (But) we fell apart in the fourth game, could not pass in serve-receive and once again made too many unforced errors.”

Port Angeles jumped to an 11-6 lead before Potts led a charge to tie the set at 11-11. But Rider Kiana Robideau, who along with Emily Johnson led PA with 10 kills apiece, had two kills late to secure the win.

“We couldn’t pass again in the fifth (set),” Webber Heilman said.

Breckenridge led the offense with 13 kills and added a team-high 35 digs on defense.

Christianson added 12 kills and seven digs while Potts had 10 kills.

Balkan had 26 assists and Oden added 11. Breckenridge was 24-of-28 serving with three aces.

Sequim served 86 percent from the serving line with nine aces.

For Port Angeles, Robideau had six aces, six assists and 19 digs. Johnson added 20 digs and 17 assists, serving 18-for-19. Callie Hall chipped in with 16 assists in the final two sets.

“What a fun, exciting and intense match,” Port Angeles coach Christine Halberg said. “The fifth set was filled with high energy from beginning to end and fans were on the edge of their seat.”

Coming up

Sequim was slated to host league-leading North Kitsap on Oct. 20. The Wolves take on Bremerton at home on Oct. 26 and round out the regular season with an Oct. 27 matchup at Olympic in Silverdale.

The West Central District 2A tournament is set for Nov. 6-7 at Franklin Pierce High School in Tacoma.