The West Platte volleyball team applauds East Buchanan after being swept in the Class 2 District 15 Championship.
The Blue Jays’ first season with Connor Kellerstrass as their head coach has come to an end as the West Platte volleyball team finished with 18 wins before falling to East Buchanan in the Class 2 District 15 Championship on Oct. 19.
Kellerstrass took over a program that has been known for its success of recent years as the Blue Jays held an 80-16-5 overall record over the three seasons prior to 2021. West Platte had a few talented players graduate in recent years - with Katie Groom being the sole senior for the Blue Jays this fall - but they didn’t disappoint in what was supposed to be a rebuilding season.
“I love coaching these girls, they work so hard and are a lot of fun,” Kellerstrass said. “The fact that we are only losing one senior and have a nice group of younger girls coming in next year is really exciting for the future.”
West Platte entered the district tournament as the No. 3 seed and upset Mid-Buchanan, who was the second seed, in the semifinals on Oct. 23 at East Buchanan High School. The Blue Jays defeated the Dragons in four sets to move on to take on the top-seed East Buchanan, who defeated West Platte in five sets in the regular season match on Sept. 16.
The Blue Jays began the first set in the championship match off slow, falling behind early and only ending with nine total points. West Platte bounced back in the next two sets, but it was unable to pull either of them out.
“That was one of our first times in that type of environment, so I think we were a little timid to start. It’s tough to win a district title on their home court and in a hostile environment like that,” Kellerstrass said.
West Platte never led in the second set, but it stuck around to keep the deficit within 6 points, before falling by a score of 25-20. In the final set, there were three ties and four lead changes for the first seven points before East Buchanan extended its lead, 8-3.
The Blue Jays continued to fight their way back against the Bulldogs, narrowing the deficit, 14-11. East Buchanan closed the third set out, winning it 25-14, to complete the sweep and eliminate the Blue Jays.
“It just wasn’t our night; we were a little shaky to start and East Buchanan was confident and aggressive. We kind of got deflated after the second set, and tonight we didn’t get the job done,” Kellerstrass said.