Five things to watch at Missouri state volleyball

… at Missouri state volleyball1 An O’Hara three-peat?

Who can challenge O’Hara? The Celtics are the two-time defending Missouri Class 3 champions, and their coach, Lori Hanaway, has won four straight titles. (She won in 2005 at O’Hara and 2006 with St. Teresa’s.) O’Hara is beatable — they are 29-6, after all — but if the Celtics execute, a third title could be within their grasp. The Celtics are led by a pair of junior middle hitters in Tori Hurtt, who has 341 kills this year, and Michala Boehm, who has 224. Junior setter Lindsey Hanaway sets the table for them consistently. The Celtics can set the tone early in pool play today — their first opponent is Logan-Rogersville, a team they beat in the championship match last year.

2 Momentum matters

While O’Hara probably doesn’t need much of a confidence boost considering its status as the two-time defending champs, it’s probably worth noting that the other two metro area schools to reach the final four are also entering the tournament with plenty of confidence. Lutheran, 30-4, has won 15 matches in a row while Blue Springs, 33-4, has won 14 in a row. Neither team has lost in a month.

3 It’s been a while for Blue Springs

Blue Springs hasn’t made it this far since 2001, when it finished third, but it could be the team that has the best shot of knocking off the defending Class 4 champion in St. Joseph’s Academy (St. Louis). The Wildcats are led by 6-foot-1 senior outside hitter Lisa Henning, who has racked up 320 kills and is headed to play for Missouri next year. Middle hitter Kirsten Erikson is a threat as well. The 6-foot senior has 240 kills.

4 It’s definitely been a while for Lutheran

Kansas City Lutheran has made it to the Class 1 final four for only the second time in the program’s history. The first time came way back in 1986, when the school finished fourth. Regardless, Lutheran has certainly had to earn its way to this point, narrowly edging out Concordia 2-1 (24-26, 25-23, 25-20) in the quarterfinals. Senior outside hitter Jessica Kunkel figures to be a key for the Knights.

5 Home cooking

This marks the second year in a row the state volleyball tournament will be in Kansas City. Prior to last year, it hadn’t taken place here since 1987. And there will be a noticeable difference at Municipal Auditorium on the final day of the tournament. On Friday, there will be two courts with regular stadium seating. But on Saturday, every first- and third-place match will be held on one court and bleachers will be added to bring fans closer to the action. “The teams will like it,” said O’Hara coach Lori Hanaway. “It seemed like we were kind of far away from the fans last year.”

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