The Mead Panthers, in jeopardy of falling behind 2-0 in games, bounced back for a 3-1 win over Monroe in a State 4A volleyball loser-out match at Kennewick's Toyota Center on Saturday. The Panthers (28-3) will play for fifth and sixth places at 3 p.m. against Bellarmine Prep (29-4), which won the last three state tournaments. The seven-time champion Panthers couldn't hold a 22-19 lead in the first game but led the second game 20-11 before the Bearcats (29-4) put on a furious rally. Monroe tied the game at 24 with a 13-4 run and served for the game at 26-25 before the Panthers fought back. Mead cruised in the final two games. Sophomore Maddie Lee had 12 kills and three aces for the Panthers. Senior Payton Douglass added 30 digs and sophomore Lindsey Russell had 21 assists.
Scoring
Kills-Teague (Mon) 11, Lee (Mea) 12. Assists-Hadden (Mon) 21, L. Russell (Mea) 21. Aces-Lee (Mea) 3. Digs-Duong (Mon) 22, Douglass (Mea) 30. Blocks-M. Russell (Mea) 5, Menner (Mea) 5.