The Renton High volleyball team’s goal in the preseason was to collect more wins than losses. That didn’t happen, but something even better did. In the wake of a second-half surge, Renton finds itself in the playoffs for the first time in 20 years.

Even through an 0-4 start, head coach Sally Eager knew the Indians had it in them to play much, much better.

“It’s been fun to see the girls play the way I knew they could,” Eager said. “I kept telling them, ‘Look you guys are a better team than the standings say. We aren’t playing the way we should be.’”

Eager said things started to turn in a midseason, non-league tournament where Renton beat Lindbergh and Foster, after losing to both teams earlier in the regular season. After that, the group picked up what Eager called the biggest necessity for being a winning team: confidence.

Then the Seamount tournament Oct. 27-28, and even more confidence for the squad. Renton lost to Highline 3-2 in the first round, but Eager noticed a difference in her team on the court.

“We played with them. We played very well,” she said. “Afterward, I heard comments from parents, coaches and people in the crowd asking where was this team during the season? That’s how much better they look.”

In a final show of improvement, Renton beat Lindbergh and Foster in the next two rounds of the Seamount tournament to go from seventh in the Seamount in standings to fifth in the tournament results.

The Indians are currently at 6-9 overall after a 4-8 overall record in the regular season.

Standouts for Renton in the Seamount tournament: Alexis Lagonoy, 31 assists against Highline and 26 assists against Foster. Sarah Nelson, 16 kills, 8 aces, 14 digs, 3 blocks against Lindbergh. Boryana Atanasova, 18 kills, 8 aces against Foster. Breann Benedictus, 11 kills, 5 digs, 3 blocks against Highline. Tu-Anh Dinh, 10 aces against Highline.

Next up for Renton: subdistricts Saturday, the Seamount and SPSL meet in matches all day long. The top two teams from each league automatically move on to the next round and play a tournament at Kennedy. The remaining eight teams at the tournament battle for five spots at districts.

– Lindbergh lost to Mount Rainier 3-0 in the first round and 3-1 to Renton in the next round.

– Hazen beat Tyee 3-0 in a play-in game, then fell to Kennedy 3-0 in the first round, then Foster eliminated the Highlanders with a 3-1 win.