The Yelm volleyball team was swept by Puyallup 25-13, 25-19, 25-11, at home in its regular season finale on Tuesday, Oct. 27.
Yelm celebrated its six seniors on senior night: Riley Smith, Kinsley Corak, Hayden Christensen, Lexi Stone, Rylee Hominda, and Taylor Fossum, as well as senior manager Tia Pulu. Smith recorded 20 digs in her final game as a Tornado, while Hominda tallied 14 assists and three aces. Christensen added a pair of blocks.
Smith, Corak, Fossum and Anna Lee all passed above a 2.00 in serve receive.
“A tough loss, but the Tornados had some shining moments of hustle and grit,” Yelm first-year head coach Bailey Whalen said. “As a whole, I am very pleased with the athletes and the experience. I have not been in this head coaching role at this level before, and I wouldn't trade much for the season we had. I think that the record obviously doesn’t reflect the hours and heart these young women put into their craft, but their culture does. We spent time in the summer building our leadership program and starting our “Rooted” culture from the ground up, and these seven seniors that we are losing should be proud of what they’ve laid the foundation for.”
Whalen acknowledged that the Tornados compete in the state’s toughest league in the South Puget Sound League, but she believes there’s plenty of potential in the team’s underclassmen in the future.
“I know that we will just continue to move and grow upward as we continue to develop the underclass athletes. I hope that our community sees this as much more than just a sport and a positive environment for female athletes to be around positive female role models and learn to grow and challenge themselves in a safe and competitive environment,” Whalen said. “We need the support from our people around us, and last night at senior night, the showout was great. The athletes deserve that every home game.
“I’m proud of the Tornados and can’t wait to see what we can do next.”
