Madras stamps out Tiger dreams

REDMOND — It wasn’t a stampede Friday in the quarterfinals of the 4A state volleyball tournament.

But La Grande may have felt that way when White Buffaloes edged the Lady Tigers 3-2.

The loss dropped La Grande into the consolation bracket where they will play Elmira Saturday at  10 a.m. Elmira lost to Crook County in a 3-0 sweep (25-11, 25-23, 25-8).

The White Buffaloes battle Crook County in tonight’s semifinals at  8:30 p.m. The Cowgirls will be going after a seventh straight state 4A title.

Fifth-ranked La Grande (16-3) entered the 4A quarterfinals with a 13th-ranked Madras (15-9) Friday.

Madras, the second-seed from the Tri-Valley Conference, won the first game by a 25-21 margin.

La Grande came back to tie the match with a 26-24 victory in the second set.

In the third game, Madras jumped out to an 18-8 lead and took the 25-13 win for a 2-1 advantage.

In the fourth game, it was the Tigers who jumped out to a 10-4 lead and tied the match at 2-2 with a 25-20 victory.

In the fifth game, La Grande got off to a slow start, letting Madras take a 6-2 lead before rallying with five points. 

The Tigers cut the lead to 9-7 and both teams were tied at 14-all.

The White Buffaloes came up with the winning points for a 16-14 victory that moved the team into the semifinals.

For more information, see the coverage of the 4A state volleyball tournament in Monday's edition.