Seward volleyball staves off Barrow in five sets to avoid opening round upset in 3A state tournament

After coming up short in each of their previous five meetings this season, the Barrow Whalers were determined to prove that the sixth time would be the charm when they faced off with the Seward Seahawks in the opening round of the 3A state volleyball tournament on Thursday afternoon and nearly pulled it off.

“We have always battled with them this whole season like this,” Seward head coach Jodi Kurtz said. “Barrow is a great team to play, and we love playing them.”

It took five sets and several comebacks, but the Seahawks were able to avoid falling to a team that had played them tough all year and as recently as the beginning of this month.

“We played them in a tournament two weeks ago and it was the same thing for the championship and it went into an if-game,” Kurtz said.

On Thursday, the Whalers stunned Seward by taking the first set 25-20, nearly rallied to take the second, won the third 26-24, nearly led by double digits in the fourth only to see it get erased and almost dug themselves out of a 10-3 deficit at one point in the fifth.

“My girls fought hard, we really wanted this, and we knew it was going to be tough, but they pulled it out,” Kurtz said.

Barrow jumped out to a swift 6-0 lead to open the fourth set but after a timeout helped the Seahawks calm their nerves and reset, they battled their way back to force a fifth set where they ultimately prevailed 15-13.

“We just got in our heads a little bit, and then when we called that timeout, our coaches told us what we needed to do, but once we got on the court, we got in our own huddle,” junior Mikinley Williams said. “After every point, we cheered like it was our last game ever.”

The Seahawks roster is evenly composed of upperclassmen and underclassmen with just two freshmen and three sophomores to two seniors and three juniors, but the resiliency they displayed came from their veteran leaders.

“They hold the team together, and if they’re down, the whole team is down, and we’ve talked to them about staying up and being supportive and being that mentor to the younger ones — and they did great,” Kurtz said.

Getting the players to develop a mindset of having strong mental fortitude in the face of adversity is something her team struggled with in the past where they’d collapse under pressure but now are rising to the occasion more often than not.

“It was really just kind of overwhelming,” Williams said. “My team has been working so hard and seeing their faces light up after every point really makes me and the whole team happy.”

She says Seward’s friendly rivalry with Barrow dates back to her freshman year, and the two squads have been back and forth ever since.

“This year, it hasn’t been easy at all,” she said. “Barrow is such a strong team. Their defense is incredible, their hitting is incredible and they know how to spot anywhere on the court.”

Kurtz says she isn’t the type of coach that usually stands up during matches, but her team’s matchup with the Whalers was too “nerve-wracking” to sit still.

“I normally sit on the bench, but I was so far away from the bench that I had to yell for them to hear me, so I decided to stand up,” she said. “I typically get nervous and grip onto chairs, but I had nothing to grip onto and it was exciting.”

A hard-fought win such as this gives the Seahawks a jolt of confidence that their coach believes they can build on.

“Now they think that they can beat, hopefully, anybody after playing how they just did,” Kurtz said.

Defending champ Wasilla tested and then topped on Day 1 of 4A action

Barrow wasn’t the only underdog who gave a favored team a run for its money in the opening round. At the 4A level, Chugiak managed to do something no team has done since 2022, beat defending champion Wasilla in a single set at the state tournament.

The Warriors swept every opponent they went up against at last year’s annual event as they claimed the program’s first state title in over two decades. That didn’t scare the Mustangs, however, as they opened the match by winning the first set 25-17.

“Coming into this game, there is a lot of stress on both teams to get to the next round but I am really excited,” Wasilla senior Mylee Anderson said. “Chugiak did amazing per usual.”

Their opponent’s fast start didn’t surprise the Warriors in the slightest as the Mustangs were the only team heading into state that pushed them to play more than four sets.

“We did reflect on our game before when we played to five sets and in this game we just came with more of a team focus,” Anderson said “Our theme this game was to just find joy and I think we did that.”

Wasilla was defeated by South in a five-set stunner in the first match of the winner’s bracket on Thursday night and will have to battle its way back through the loser’s bracket on Friday and Saturday to earn a chance to defend their title in this double elimination tournament.

ASAA 3A state volleyball championship

Opening round

Kenai Central 3, Monroe Catholic 0 (25-11, 25-18, 25-16)

Sitka 3, Kotzebue 0 (25-14, 25-15, 25-18)

Seward 3, Barrow (20-25, 25-23, 24-26, 25-22, 15-13)

Valdez 3, Nikiski (29-31, 25-20, 26-24, 24-26, 15-11)

Winner’s bracket

Kenai Central 3, Sitka 0 (25-17, 25-22, 25-14)

Seward v. Valdez (late)

ASAA 4A state volleyball championship

Opening round

South 3, Lathrop 0 (25-14, 25-17, 25-17)

Wasilla 3, Chugiak 1 (17-25, 25-15, 25-19, 25-20)

Service 3, Juneau-Douglas 0 (25-18, 25-7, 25-18)

Dimond 3, Soldotna 1 (28-26, 27-25, 21-25, 25-14)

Winner’s bracket

South 3, Wasilla 2 (25-23, 22-25, 25-12, 21-25, 15-8)

Dimond v. Service (late)