Lady Bulldogs To Go State

DAYTON - With a stunning five-game come-from-behind victory against Liberty Christian Saturday night, the Lady Bulldogs swept into state before a jubilant home town crowd.

It's the first time in five years since the Bulldogs have gone to state. Their first game is on Friday morning at the Sundome in Yakima. Last time, Dayton went to state, they placed third.

quot;I knew we could do it,quot; team captain and senior Kayla Turner said. quot;I told the team to play calm and composed and we could go to state. We just had to take a deep breath and decide this was our game.quot;

The Bulldogs cleaned house against the other competitors who showed up to play them at the tournament. They first beat DeSales in five, then, after losing the first two games in their final match against the Patriots, the Bulldogs won the second two games and gave it their all to win the fifth.

quot;These girls weren't given anything,quot; Bulldogs head coach Shannon Turner said. quot;They earned every point. Every team at the tournament was a good team.quot;

Although the chances of winning the final Liberty Christian game seemed dim and the home crowd went quiet after the first two losses, some very unlikely looking digs combined with powerful kills and aces brought everyone back into the game. The team never lost hope, Bulldog Darci Hall said.

quot;I had confidence in us,quot; she said, referring the team and, indirectly, to the crowd, which was fired up for the fifth game. quot;We have been there before and we pulled through. We love our crowd.quot;

More details and photos in next week's print edition of the Times.