Montesano earned no worse than a share of the league title with a victory as we review Twin Harbors prep volleyball action.

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Montesano 3, Hoquiam 0

Montesano earned no less than a share of the league title with a straight-set victory over Hoquiam on Thursday at Montesano High School.

The Bulldogs (8-5 overall, 6-0 1A Evergreen) handled Hoquiam (6-7, 2-3) by scores of 25-23, 25-21 and 25-18.

Monte trailed by as much as six points in Game 1 before rallying back to win the set, giving the Bulldogs a boost they rode through the remainder of the match, despite being pushed by the Grizzlies.

“We kind of rallied back and won that one, which was huge for our momentum,” Montesano head coach Billie Dickinson said. “They’re resilient kids and they don’t give up. That allows them to get back into games when they probably don’t have a lot of business doing so.”

Monte benefited from solid performances from multiple players.

Middle blocker Violet Prince and outside hitter Jordyn Perry led the Dogs with 12 and 11 kills, respectively, while setter Makena Blancas recorded a season-high 32 assists in the victory. Seniors Grace Gooding (9-10 service, 5 kills) and Carmen Bennefeld (4 kills, 2 solo blocks) were credited by Dickinson for also having a big impact in the win.

PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Houqiam’s Piper Stankavich (left) spikes the ball while defended by Montesano’s Carmen Bennefeld and Grace Gooding (7) during the Bulldogs’ straight-set win on Thursday in Montesano.

“It was a really good team win,” she said. “Grace and Carmen both played really well. … (The stats) don’t tell the story because Grace hits it so hard, she gets them off-balance. … (Carmen) was really good tonight. She got her hands on a lot of balls tonight.”

Hoquiam was led by libero Avery Brodhead, who had 14 digs and “passed well again in serve-receive,” according to head coach Heather Bozich, with Keren Parra going perfect on service (15-15) and adding 11 digs to the Grizzlies’ defensive effort.

Outside hitter Aaliyah Kennedy led a host of Hoquiam hitters that had multiple kills with 14 as setter Mya Standstipher had 28 assists in the loss.

“The first two sets were very competitive and we had some really fun rallies. Monte just played better in the bigger points. We got down quite a bit in the third but really pushed to make a good comeback,” Bozich said of the defeat. “We’re still working on that mental toughness piece of the game but I really love how we’re playing right now. Not the outcome we were hoping for but we know what we need to do going forward.”

PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Hoquiam’s Aaliyah Kennedy rises for a kill during a 3-0 loss to Montesano on Thursday at Montesano High School.

With the win, Montesano sits two games ahead of second-place Tenino with two 1A Evergreen League games left on the schedule.

A Monte win or a Tenino loss in Tuesday’s league matchups will give Monte sole possession of the league crown.

Regardless of the outcome, Monte is assured of the league’s top playoff spot as the Bulldogs beat the Beavers in their two head-to-head meetings this season.

The Bulldogs host Rainier in a non-league game at 6:30 p.m. on Monday before resuming league play at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday at Rochester.

Hoquiam sits in third place in league, 1.5 games behind Tenino and will face the Beavers in a key contest at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday in Hoquiam.

Hoquiam 23 21 18 – 0

Montesano 25 25 25 – 3

Leading players: Hoquiam – Brodhead (14 digs); Parra (11 digs, 15-15 service); Standstipher (28 assists); Stankavich (7 kills); Gordon (5 kills); Burgess (8 kills); Kennedy (14 kills, 9 digs). Montesano – V. Prince (12 kills); Perry (11 kills); Warne (14 digs, 18-18 service, ace); Blancas (32 assists); Gooding (5 kills, 9-10 service, 3 aces); Bennefeld (4 kills, 2 solo blocks).

Tenino 3, Elma 1

Elma played a more competitive brand of volleyball in a 3-1 loss to Tenino on Thursday in Tenino.

The Eagles (0-12, 0-6 1A Evergreen) won the first set 25-23 against the second-place Beavers (8-7, 4-2), but lost the next three games by scores of 25-21, 25-13 and 25-9 to remain winless on the season.

Elma was led by setter Haylee Manners with 12 digs and eight assists and junior middle blocker Nani Kainos with 12 digs and seven kills.

The Eagles host Raymond-South Bend in a non-league match at 7 p.m. on Tuesday followed by their league finale in Hoquiam at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday.

Elma 25 21 13 9 – 1

Tenino 23 25 25 25 – 3

Leading players: Elma – Escoffon (2 block assists); F. Bossard (2 kills, 3 aces, block assist); Maners (2 kills, 8 assists, 12 digs); Sackrider (3 kills, 3 digs, 2 aces); Carter (kill, 3 digs, 2 aces, block assist); Kanios (7 kills, 2 aces, 12 digs, block, block assist); Pineda Moreno (ace, 4 digs); O’Gorman (6 digs).

Raymond-South Bend 3, Chief Leschi 0

Raymond-South Bend remained hot with a straight-set victory over Chief Leschi on Thursday in Puyallup.

The Ravens (8-3, 5-0 2B Pacific) defeated the Warriors (4-9, 0-6) by scores of 25-12, 25-9 and 25-12 behind a strong service game.

“Chief Leschi has improved since we played them last, but the serving of Mayelin Torres, Kassie Koski and Olivia White-Kelley was more than they could handle,” RSB head coach Julie Jewell said. “Mayelin in particular really took it to them. Our middles attacked the ball well.”

Torres went a perfect 27 for 27 from the service line with two aces and had 18 assists, distributing the ball to hitters Macey Enlow (12 kills, 5 blocks), Koski (8 kills, 12 digs, 4 aces) and Ava Baugher (7 kills).

With the victory, RSB has won eight of its past nine games and sits one game ahead of Forks in the 2B Pacific League standings.

The Ravens JV team won 25-12, 25-13 on Thursday.

RSB plays three games in three days next week starting with a key league matchup against North Beach at 7 p.m. Tuesday in South Bend.

RSB 25 25 25 – 3

Chief Leschi 12 9 12 – 0

Leading players: RSB – Torres Quintana (27-27 service, 2 aces, dig, 18 assists); Koski (4 aces, 12 digs, 8 kills, 2 blocks); Stepp (5 digs); Baugher (ace, 7 digs, 7 kills); Enlow (3 digs, 9 aces, 12 kills, 5 blocks); Pine (2 kills); Sedy (2 kills, 2 digs); San (ace, 3 digs, kill); White-Kelley (10-10 service, ace, 11 digs).

Other Thursday games

Centralia 3, Aberdeen 2

North Beach 3, Ilwaco 0

Mary M. Knight 3, Wishkah Valley 0

Taholah 3, Lake Quinault 0

Pe Ell 3, Ocosta 1

Ocosta lost the second game of a back-to-back 3-1 against Pe Ell on Wednesday at Ocosta High School in Westport.

Twenty-four hours after beating Wishkah Valley in straight sets, the Wildcats (5-8 overall) lost to the Trojans by scores of 25-18, 24-26, 25-10 and 25-18.

“We played a much better match this time against Pe Ell. Our defense picked up the pace,” Ocosta head coach Erin Snider said. “We struggled with our serving percentage tonight and that hurt us a critical points in Set 4.”

Ocosta was led by junior hitter Veronica Gruber, who had a double-double with 10 kills and 21 digs.

Sophomore standout Bella Pratt had a team-high 26 digs followed by senior defensive specialist Shae-Lynn Thurston with 20 digs for the Wildcats.

Ocosta junior hitter Ava Weimar had a team-best seven aces in the non-conference loss.

Ocosta returns to 1B Coastal League play with a game against Naselle at 7 p.m. on Tuesday in Westport.

Pe Ell 25 24 25 25 – 3

Ocosta 18 26 10 18 – 1

Leading players: Ocosta – Gruber (21 digs, 10 kills); Pratt (26 digs), Thurston (20 digs); Weimar (7 aces).

Taholah 3, Willapa Valley 1

Taholah defeated Willapa Valley in a key 1B Coastal League match on Tuesday at Willapa Valley High School in Menlo.

The Vikings (9-3, 7-3 1B Coastal) won the first set 25-22, but saw the Chitwhins (9-5, 6-3) rally to win three straight by scores of 25-19, 25-22 and 25-18.

“Tough loss, Taholah played tough as expected,” Vikings head coach Chelsea Kempton said. “We struggled to find a consistent rhythm most of the evening, but when we did, we were great. Just have to put all the pieces of the puzzle together.”

Valley was led by senior setter Lauren Matlock (26 assists) and middle blockers Tylar Keeton (11 kills) and Paislee Hurley (10 kills, 4 blocks).

The Vikings sit a half-game ahead of Taholah for second place in the league standings.

Taholah hosts Lake Quinault at 7 p.m. on Thursday.

Valley takes on Pe Ell in a non-conference game at 7 p.m. on Monday in Menlo.

Taholah 22 25 25 25 – 3

Willapa Valley 25 19 22 18 – 1

Leading hitters: WV – Matlock (3 aces, 26 assists); Keeton (2 aces, 11 kills, 2 blocks); Hodel (ace, 3 kills, block, assist); Hurley (10 kills, 4 blocks); Lynch (3 kills); Barnum (3 kills); Channell (2 kills, 10 digs); Sipp (6 digs).