Bountiful • The last couple of years, particularly at the state tournament, have been a jolly good time for the Bountiful Braves volleyball team.
All eight matches in the playoffs were won in sweeps as Bountiful rolled to the 2015 and 2016 Class 4A state titles.
Judging by Tuesday’s match against Skyridge, a three-peat might include going the distance in best-of-five matches for a change.
“I hope not,” Braves coach Sarah Chism said after being pushed to five by the visiting Falcons.
Chism certainly was happy that Bountiful won, however. And the coach couldn’t help but be satisfied that the Braves made the necessary adjustments to rebound from a two-set deficit to come away with a 22-25, 21-25, 25-22, 25-21, 15-9 victory.
“I just have a gritty group of girls. They’ve been gritty for three years, and they’re not going to die until the last whistle,” Chism said. “But I’m so glad we got to play a good Skyridge team early in the season, so we can see these kinds of teams early on.”
Senior Brook Pe’a punched holes in the defnse of Skyridge (2-2) to the tune of 21 kills.
But even Pe’a struggled at times as Bountiful (4-0) teetered in the third set — itself on the verge of the losing end of a sweep.
“I was thinking of my team. They need me and I need them, that’s what I needed to pull through,” Pe’a said.
BOUNTIFUL 3, SKYRIDGE 2 <br>• Brook Pe’a piles up 21 kills for thevictorious Braves while outside hitter Baylee Mittelstaedt andsophomore middle Hannah Howard score eight and seven respectively.<br>• Bountiful trailed two sets to zero before rebounding to winthe final three. <br>• Kenadee Christensen and Brinley Watkinspace Skyridge with 12 kills each.
Something else the Braves needed, and got at an increasing rate over the last two sets, was production in the middle.
Junior Baily Jenkins ended up with six kills and a pair of blocks, while sophomore Hannah Howard had seven kills and five stuffs from the middle hitting position.
But the pair’s production was limited when Skyridge grabbed the first two sets.
“They woke up and that’s what we were hoping for. They’re young, but they are actually getting better at such an incredible rate,” Chism said. “One of them, Hannah, isn’t even a middle. She was an outside. Her improvement rate is amazing. I can’t wait to see what she’s doing at the end of the season.”
The teams were tied at 5-5 in the deciding fifth set when Bountiful won three straight points behind two kills from Pe’a and a block from Jenkins.
Skyridge was led by outside hitter Kenadee Christensen and opposite Brinley Watkins, who each had a dozen kills. Setter Kate Standifird also had five kills but established an important early presence at the net with five blocks.
“I would have been surprised if they rolled over and died. I mean, they’re the defending state champions,” Skyridge coach Deanna Meyer said. “Let’s give them the respect that they deserve. I knew they weren’t going to do that, and we need to match that [effort].”