DeTroy, Moore hit their way to major Northwest Oregon Conference volleyball postseason honors

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Two local volleyball players were big, big hits in league play this season.

Opposing coaches recognized that, and recognized them, in the all-league balloting.

Darci DeTroy of Scappoose High and Savannah Moore of St. Helens were among the eight first-team selections, largely for the hits they imposed on opposing defenses.

DeTroy is a 5-10 senior outside hitter. Moore is a 5-9 junior middle blocker. Both moved around on the front row and in the attack, though, and DeTroy in particular helped out in the back row as well and landed a lot of service aces.

DeTroy and Wilsonville 6-1 senior outside hitter Lindsey Hartford shared top honors in the Northwest Oregon Conference — they were named co-players of the year.

While neither St. Helens nor Scappoose had a player make the all-NWOC second team, the Lions had five players earn honorable mention: seniors Izy Wallace, Brynn Austin and Dessa Cooper, junior Kasten Warner and sophomore Karlee Webster.

Scappoose senior Sophia Johanson-Phillips also was honorable mention.

For Scappoose, which went 8-12 overall and 5-9 to tie for fifth in the conference, the search for points usually started and ended with DeTroy's strong left arm swings. She had 185 kills in 14 league matches, hitting .220.

"She was pretty much our offense," Indians coach Mark Sprenger said. "We set her probably over 80% of the time. She put the ball away for us. She also scored a bunch on jump serving and was probably one of our better defenders and came in and set and passed.

"That all makes her a quadruple threat."

Sprenger estimated that DeTroy swung more than 40 times per game. A third-year varsity player, DeTroy had 65 aces in 14 league matches, along with 31 blocks, 125 digs and a 2.1 serve receive rating.

Hartford, who was the NWOC player of the year in 2018, led the Wildcats to a 14-0 season, the No. 2 ranking in Oregon School Activities Association Class 5A and second place in the state tournament.

"Lindsey's really good," Sprenger said. "It just speaks what the coaches thought of Darci. She definitely led us to some victories."

One of DeTroy's key running mates on the front line this season was Johanson-Phillips, who provided some mean blocking and high-percentage finishing.

"She also really funneled the ball to who we needed to pass the ball," Sprenger said. "Her game was very steady. You pretty much knew what you were going to get from Sophia every night."

Sprenger said Johanson-Phillips could have earned even higher honors except that "there are some really good middles in our league … I think it's difficult to get onto that first or second team unless you're playing all the way around."

St. Helens was third in the NWOC with a 10-4 league mark, losing only to Wilsonville and runner-up La Salle Prep. The Lions qualified for the state playoffs and finished 12-9 overall.

"We had a really good season," coach Tom Ray said.

St. Helens opponents had to deal first and foremost with the springy, exuberant Moore, who was a threat to pound the ball to the floor at any moment.

"She had a great year," Ray said. "To me, she is by the best hitter in the league. She also was our best blocker. She has hops.

"Next year I see her maybe playing all-around, and that might help her be Player of the Year. She has a good attitude at practice and just about life. She works hard. Her hitting is getting better and better."

The Lions' honorable-mention picks covered the rest of the court, with the veteran Wallace primarily a right-side hitter but able to rotate around the court, Austin a force in the middle or on the right side, Cooper the seasoned libero, Warner in the back or wherever needed and Webster a strong, young spiker as well who helped complement Moore.

Wallace, 5-4, made it to the varsity state playoffs for the fourth year in a row.

"Izy played all-around because I could trust her. I didn't want her to leave the floor. She also has hops and is really quick and can run down balls.

"Brynn (5-10) are two seniors who really bought into what we do," Ray said. "They're great examples that it doesn't matter how big you are, if you play the right way and play the percentages, you can be successful. Brynn is the type I can see doing whatever she wants to in life.

"I felt Izy and Brynn really deserved to be second team. I was dumbfounded they didn't make it."

Cooper, the only other senior on the team this year, "made it a pretty tight group, too. She plays volleyball year-round, and I'm going to picture her playing somewhere in college as a libero. She was our captain on the floor. She'll talk to the referees, she knows the game, she knows all the players, she can read everything, and if I tell her where to go, she will do that. She's very coachable. Always smiling."

Warner, 5-7, developed into one of the team's best at serve receive. "She's pretty quiet, but she goes for every ball and gives 100 percent in every practice and game," Ray said. "She was also a good server for us, and we didn't miss a lot of serves this year — I think we were at 94 percent — so our serving kept us on the court. And Kasten has the kind of serve that floats over the net and just drops."

Ray said Warner might slide into the libero role next season.

The 5-9 Webster, meanwhile, he hopes will just continue to have more of an impact with her scoring and overall play. She missed some matches late in the season with an injury but already has two years of varsity experience.

"She passes well, hits well, talks a lot and does everything right," Ray said. "She's one I want on the court."

All-NWOC volleyball team

First team

Darci DeTroy, Scappoose senior

Lindsey Hartford, Wilsonville senior

Vai Taale, Putnam junior

Clarissa Klein, Wilsonville junior

Natalie Mathers, Parkrose junior

Maggie Rasch, La Salle Prep senior

Savannah Moore, St. Helens junior

Kennedy Juranek, Wilsonville senior

Second team

Kaleah Webb, Hillsboro sophomore

Sydney Fritz, Parkrose junior

Bella Baragona, Putnam senior

Maggie Gabrish, La Salle Prep junior

Ashli Edmiston, Wilsonville sophomore

Grace Thompson, Wilsonville senior

Katelyn Bell, La Salle Prep junior

Ellie Brown, Milwaukie senior

Honorable mention

Sofiya Freimuth, Hillsboro senior

Nina Timmen, La Salle Prep senior

Cassidy Galyon, Milwaukie senior

Lexi Perez, Milwaukie senior

Christina Nguyen, Parkrose senior

Kaitlyn Fritz, Parkrose junior

Kiana Robertson, Putnam senior

Taylor Grace, Putnam senior

Sophia Johanson-Phillips, Scappoose senior

Izy Wallace, St. Helens senior

Brynn Austin, St. Helens senior

Kasten Warner, St. Helens junior

Karlee Webster, St. Helens sophomore

Dessa Cooper, St. Helens senior

Tenley Lubisch, Wilsonville senior

Co-coaches of the year

Nabila Gaines, Parkrose

Nathan Blankenship, Wilsonville