Liberty volleyball takes fifth place, records best finish in school history

A long drive to Yakima was all worth it for the Liberty Patriots volleyball team, which was rewarded with their highest finish of all time in the sport.

Over the two-day tournament from Nov. 22-23, the Patriots went 3-1 inside the Yakima Valley SunDome — and took home a fifth-place trophy.

“We showed a lot of resilience,” Head Coach Shea O’Brien said.

A performance that was earned saw Liberty scratching and clawing their way to fifth place, and that includes righting some wrongs that have bitten the Patriots all season.

After hanging on to beat West Seattle in five sets, the Patriots took on White River in the fifth place matchup. The Hornets played extremely well, but Liberty handled their business, winning three sets to none.

The Patriots came in as the eighth seed and opened up play against Lynnwood. Last season, in the state tournament, the Patriots fell in their opening round match against Mount Spokane.

This year, there was an emphasis on winning the opening round, and from the jump, they looked to fall again. Against the Royals early, Liberty did not look like themselves.

The discussion between the second and third set was more about strategy rather than building confidence or morale.

“We were very predictable and that’s not really us. We play our best volleyball when all five of our hitters are available and hitting… We are too good to be sending the same pass to the same person every time,” O’Brien said.

The Patriots lost the first two sets in nail-biting fashion, 26-24 and 27-25. In the third set, the Patriots bounced back, and had a lead by over ten points twice. Even with those leads, Lynnwood got right back in the game. Liberty led 22-11, and in the blink of an eye, it was 23-21. Doubt creeped in, but the Patriots kept Lynnwood at bay and ended up winning set three and set four to force a fifth set.

A huge factor in the two sets was sophomore Alicia Lester, who hadn’t played that much all season. But she brought a different flavor to Liberty on the floor and made a monumental impact.

“That was a really tough spot to be in … She did great. It makes me excited for next year,” O’Brien said.

In 2024, Liberty has not had much success in five set matches. Over the course of the season, the Patriots have played in four matches that have gone to a final set. They had lost all four.

But despite all their history of missing out in fifth sets, the Patriots started out fast. It was a 10-4 lead early for Liberty, and some clutch shots down the stretch from Julianne Lee gave Liberty a 3-2 set win over Lynnwood.

“Apparently they didn’t mean as much,” O’Brien said with a laugh.

“We didn’t start out strong in the rest of them. They used their nerves productively,” she added.

The next matchup for the Patriots was top-seeded Ridgeline. The Falcons boasted a 15-1 record and had beaten Bishop Blanchet 3-0.

That rolling rock kept rolling through Liberty, which just didn’t have the energy to take down the top seed.

“We used it as another opportunity,” senior Layne Ford said.

Liberty fell in straight sets and went to the consolation bracket, where they were set to dance with fourth-seeded West Seattle.

“That wasn’t how I wanted it to end. Everyone really came together, we slept well, we ate well. We also prepared well, better than we had in the past,” senior Miaya Lester said.

The Wildcats defeated the Patriots in straight sets in the district championship a week prior. Liberty came out on fire, silencing the Wildcats to a quick 2-0 lead.

It has been a point of emphasis to get the first point — to bring the energy and get off on the right foot.

“We thought we would be kind of tired because it is in the morning. But we really found the energy first point in the game, which all year we have been having a first set mentality,” Ford said.

Needing just one set to win, the Patriots started slow in the following two set match. Then just like what they did to Lynnwood, West Seattle looked like they were going to do the same to Liberty.

The tie-breaker was intense. In a “lose and no trophy” scenario, the Patriots’ backs were against the wall. The seniors rose up and got the team going in the right direction.

“I couldn’t be more proud of them. That is a great way to end your career for all three of them to play well. They have been leading us all year, so it is a great way to finish,” O’Brien said.

The two sides were tied at 11-11 before Liberty found some momentum and won 15-12.

“It felt like all of our hard work paid off at the right time … We showed up when it mattered. We were working hard all match,” Ford said.

It was emotional and impactful — and guaranteed the Patriots their best finish in school history. Liberty finished eighth in 2014, seventh in 2017, and seventh last season.

In what would be the final game of the season against White River, the two played an extremely competitive first set. Liberty just edged the Hornets 27-25 in set one.

In set two, the Patriots won by another narrow margin, 25-22. Then in the final set, on a Charlize Espinosa ace, the Patriots clinched fifth place.

“Today we played more for each other than we had all season. I think we really came together and everything we did was for each other,” Lester said.

Liberty could have folded, a group that battled their entire time in the SunDome where no points came easy, let alone wins. A team that had just three seniors gained an immense amount of experience and have hope for the future.

“I am so excited to see what they do next year… I think they are going to do really well. I think we have a very solid foundation. We aren’t just three people. We were a full team. That showed today. We couldn’t win with just three or just six. We had to win with everyone,” Lester said.