Battle Ground Academy's volleyball team rallied from two sets down to beat Providence Christian Academy 17-15 in a fifth set Tuesday, Sept. 29. The win sends the third-seeded Wildcats to the Division II-A Middle Region District 3 championship.
BGA will face top-seeded Franklin Road Academy for the district title Thursday, Oct. 1, at 6 p.m. at Grace Christian Academy, according to the Williamson Herald. FRA earned its spot by beating No. 5 Grace Christian Academy in the other semifinal.
Grey Malone powered the Wildcats' comeback with 14 kills and 21 digs against No. 2 PCA. Senior Jo Snyder matched her with a double-double of her own: 11 kills and a team-high 24 digs.
The full set scores told the story of BGA's resilience. The Wildcats took the opener 25-23, dropped the next two 18-25 and 13-25, then stormed back to win 25-20 and 17-15.
Setters Gianna Ippolito and Macey Claire Tidwell combined for 34 assists to fuel the offense. Elena Miller anchored the back row with 22 digs on defense.
The semifinal capped a strong week for BGA in the district tournament. The Wildcats opened with a four-set win over Franklin Christian Academy on Monday, Sept. 28, at home. Snyder paced that match with 15 kills and 14 digs, while Malone added 12 kills and 15 digs. Hanna Gregg and Claudie Dobie each contributed 10 kills in the quarterfinal victory.
Malone and Snyder each recorded double-doubles in both district tournament matches. Snyder, a senior, has been a consistent force at the net and in the back row across both contests.
All four district semifinalists advance to the regional tournament regardless of Thursday's results. Grace Christian Academy and PCA meet in the third-place match at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, followed by the BGA-FRA championship at 6 p.m.
