Platte County locked up the Suburban Conference White Division championship outright with a win Tuesday at William Chrisman but saw an unbeaten streak in league play come to an end in a five-set loss to Grain Valley at home on Thursday. The Pirates’ victory two days earlier made it 46 straight wins dating back to the latter half of the 2018 season — a run that included three straight Blue Division crowns before moving up a tier for the first time in 2022.
Platte County junior Jenna Wheeler bumps a pass against Grain Valley on Thursday at Platte County High School.
Grain Valley did so in stunning fashion, dominating the fifth set in a 22-25, 25-22, 19-25, 25-22, 15-8 marathon win.
Platte County jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the opening set with a combined block from senior Karsyn Stehlik and junior Tatianna Murray. The Pirates then took the same lead in the second set, hitting that mark with a block from junior Kendall Johnson.
However, Grain Valley managed a split with a big comeback in the second — tying the match at 13-13 then 17-17 and holding on for what turned out to be a pivotal set.
Stehlik recorded the winning kill in the third set to put Platte County on the brink of a victory, but Grain Valley seized momentum in the fourth set and did not give it back. The Pirates rallied back to within 23-22 on a kill from sophomore Karlee Riggs after being down 19-11 at one point but couldn’t avoid the fifth set tiebreaker to 15 after sweeping Grain Valley in the first meeting earlier this season.
Riggs finished with a team-high 15 kills for Platte County, while Stehlik added 12 and Murray 11. However, the Pirates committed 28 attacking errors and eight in service to hamper the efforts.
Platte County recorded 10 total aces with Murray (four) and junior libero Avery Walter (2) leading the way. The Pirates were also strong at the net with 12 blocks, receiving four assists from Kendall Johnson and three each for Murray and senior Madison Hoyt.
Platte County junior middle hitter Tatiana Murray hits a spike against Grain Valley on Thursday at Platte County High School.
Emma Harned, Platte County’s junior setter had 45 total assists plus a team-high 20 digs. The Pirates’ defense also included 16 digs from Walter, 12 from junior Ava Wheeler and 11 each for juniors Jenna Wheeler and Ava Filger.
With the loss, Platte County goes into Tuesday’s nonconference regular season finale vs. Blue Springs South (13-17) with a 22-8 record before opening Class 4 District 8 play over the weekend as the No. 1 seed. The Pirates will be seeking a second playoff trip in three years after losing the Class 5 District 8 title match to Park Hill while bumped in a classification for the 2021 season.
Platte County went 7-1 in White Division play and have won at least 22 matches for a sixth straight season. Grain Valley and Belton both have a 5-2 White Division record going into the regular season finale scheduled for Tuesday.
Platte County 3, William Chrisman 0
The Pirates were dominant in a 25-14, 25-14, 25-9 victory Tuesday in Independence behind a balanced offense of Stehlik (nine kills), Johnson (eight kills), Harned (seven kills) and Murray (six kills).
Platte County also had nine aces with three from Ava Wheeler and two each from Jenna Wheeler and Murray. Harned also had three block assists, nine digs and 14 set assists with Ava Wheeler also seeing time at the setter spot with 11 assists.
Ava Wheeler and Jenna Wheeler led the defense with 10 digs apiece, while Walter added seven.
