YAKIMA — Montesano retained its hopes for a state trophy by splitting a pair of matches in the state 1A Volleyball Championships on Friday at the SunDome.

The Bulldogs lost a five-set thriller to Annie Wright of Tacoma, 21-25, 16-25, 25-14, 25-22, 15-13, in an opening-round match.

They stayed alive in the losers bracket later in the day by sweeping Kiona-Benton, 25-18, 25-21, 25-14. Details of those matches were not reported.

Montesano (19-2) will face Naches Valley in a loser-out match this morning. Out of title contention, the Bulldogs can finish as high as seventh place. They must win at least twice today to earn a state trophy.

Lake Quinault dropped both its matches in the Class 1B tourney, also at the SunDome.

After falling to Sunnyside Christian in the opening round, 25-7, 25-8, 25-9, the Elks were far more competitive against Odessa-Harrington in a loser-out affair. Odessa-Harrington, however, wound up eliminating the Elks in four sets, 17-25, 25-23, 25-22, 25-22.

“The first match was pretty much an eye-opener,” Quinault coach Sue Kalama said. “We had a lot of girls who were first-timers there. We did play better against Odessa.”

Lake Quinault’s Gema Ochoa was cited for serving.

“Everyone played well, but it wasn’t enough,” Kalama said. “The girls kept up their spirits and we’ll be back next year.”