GARFIELD HANDS BOTHELL FIRST LEAGUE LOSS IN 3 YEARS
-Staff, Seattle Times
October 2, 2003

BOTHELL — It was only a midseason match, but Garfield's victory over Bothell last night was anything but ordinary.

The Bulldogs won 17-25, 28-26, 25-15, 25-23, ending the Cougars' 33-match KingCo 4A Conference winning streak. Bothell last lost a conference match in the fall of 2000.

"We've always looked up to Bothell as the standard in the league," said Garfield coach Leslie Hamann. "Our goal has been to play defense like Bothell, and from there good things will happen. They've had such a fabulous program, and it was great to see our girls step up to that level."

The Bulldogs (4-2 overall, 3-0 KingCo) won their seventh consecutive league road match.

Having lost the first game 25-17, the Bulldogs knew a second-game turnaround would be crucial if they hoped to topple the reigning KingCo and Sea-King District champs.

"We came out a little slow," said Hamann. "The girls could have folded in the second game, but that game turned out to be a real turning point for us."

Chelle Ticeson and Lillie Cohn supplied the power for Garfield, combining for 25 kills. Ticeson had 10 kills, two blocks and seven digs, while Cohn pounded out 15 kills to go along with her 29 digs.

Amanda Jamieson, Garfield's libero, led a strong defensive showing with 36 digs.

"Jamieson picked up everything when the going got tough," said Hamann. "And Ticeson started swinging hard and made things happen."

Ali Simmons had 20 assists and 10 digs for Bothell (5-1, 2-1). Lauren Wainhouse added five aces, 13 kills, and 3 blocks.

"My hat's off to them," said Bothell coach Russ Kerwin. "Garfield is a great program. They're well coached and played a great match."