4A STATE: Centennial targets title following play-in reprieve

Centennial’s girls volleyball team knows second chances don’t come around every day. Lacy Miyahira hopes the Bulldogs make the most of theirs.

Centennial needed a 3-2 victory over Las Vegas in a play-in match Monday to advance to the Class 4A state tournament, starting Friday at Chaparral.

“We’re really lucky to have a second chance. Not everyone gets that,” said Miyahira, a senior outside hitter/setter.

Centennial (28-6), which lost to Bishop Gorman 3-1 in the Sunset Region final, takes on Sunrise champion Green Valley (30-6) at 6:20 p.m. Gorman (29-10) faces Northern Region champ Reed at 8.

Bulldogs coach Shannon Alia is eager to see how her team responds to its new life, saying, “It’s a great opportunity for these girls to show some perseverance and heart.”

The Bulldogs face a stiff challenge in the Gators, last year’s state runners-up.

Green Valley has dominated much of its Nevada competition, fueled by dynamic outside hitters Nikki Drost (333 kills) and Carly Scheiss (246), and an offense that feeds off setter Jenna Swaffer (785 assists) and libero Alexa Drost (158 digs).

Centennial has fared well under pressure, though, with the Bulldogs referring to themselves as the “Comeback Kids” for most of last year. It was a nickname Alia worked to stop this season, though.

“I told them to stop doing that; get a lead and stay ahead,” she said. “Getting a lead and keeping a lead is what we want to do.”

Of the Bulldogs’ six losses, only three were to in-state competition: Gorman, Green Valley and Spanish Springs. In its victories, Centennial has typically heeded its coach’s advice, with only one regular-season win going to five sets.

Miyahira has led the team in multiple categories, averaging 2.8 assists and 2.3 kills per set, and senior Kassidy Welte averages 2.3 kills per set from outside.

“They’ve been solid all year for us,” Alia said. “They make those plays that have kept us in every game.”

Libero Ashley Hill, who earned Northwest League Most Valuable Player honors, sparks the Bulldogs’ defensive unit with 364 digs, an average of 3.6 per set.

Miyahira hopes to leave a mark on the state tournament in her senior year.

“I just want to leave it all on the court,” she said. “Win or lose, this is my last week of playing high school volleyball. Win or lose, I’ll be happy with not letting down and putting up a fight.”