There’s been a slow build up of the 6A preseason No. 4 South Salem girls volleyball team over the past few years.
In 2022, the Saxons made the state playoffs and won in the first round before being bounced by Jesuit in round two.
In 2023, South Salem got past the second round and into the state tournament where it drew No. 1 Jesuit again in the quarterfinals and lost. The Saxons won their consolation match to play for a trophy, taking sixth after a loss to Sherwood.
And in 2024, the Saxons won an emotional five-setter over league rival Sprague in the quarterfinals, marking the furthest the program has ever made it in the state tournament in volleyball.
Oregon City would bounce the Saxons to the third-fifth place match however, and they fell to Nelson in four sets to take fifth.
Now in 2025, head coach Matt Leichty – entering his 16th year leading the program – believes he has one of the most talented teams he’s ever had.
“They want to win, flat out,” Leichty said. “Where can they go? The pieces are there to make a really, really deep run. We’re stronger than last year, definitely more offense than last year and our defense is looking probably better than I would have hoped for at this point as well.”
At the heart of this surge in the program are two seniors in setter Kamree Orizotti and outside hitter Briella Mathis.
Orizotti enters the year with 2,541 career assists after starting since she was a freshman. That mark puts her sixth all-time in the state record books already and only 828 assists behind Santiam Christian’s Madison McLain in first with 3,369 from 2010-2013.
Orizotti has averaged 847 assists a season to get to this point, so another stellar year from the senior should do the trick.
“(Orizotti has) had a really strong career and been fortunate to have the players she can set the ball to who can score for her,” Leichty said. “She had never set prior to high school, so that was a, ‘We’re really short on setters in this program right now and you look like you could do it.’ She took it and went with it, and obviously it’s worked out incredibly well.”
One of those attackers that Orizotti has been setting for all these years is Mathis, who is finding space in the record books as well.
Her 1,032 career kills is the 19th most in state history, an average of 344 per year. Another 344 would put her at 1,376 kills and seventh all-time.
“We’ve leaned heavily on (Mathis) the last few years and she just continues to get better,” Leichty said. “Tall kid, athletic kid, but not only does she play well as a front-row player, but she’s great in the back row too. Has a motor, she works hard all the time.
“Kids look to her a lot too, she’s just very steady and calming and has the right stuff to say a lot of times to help the team.”
Orizotti is committed to play at Towson next year while Mathis is off to Southern Oregon, but not before some unfinished business at state where the Saxons have never reached the title match.
Joining the Saxons this year are twins Avery and Addison Herber, two juniors who transferred over from 2A Western Christian. They both are committed to Montana already to play at the next level.
Avery is a 6-foot-2 outside hitter while Addison is 6-foot-1 and is a middle blocker.
“They have really helped add some versatility to our offense, we lost some great players, we lost both of our middles last year,” Leichty said. “Having those two come in really fills some holes, and it’s not just whoever coming in. They’re both high-level players and they’re competitors and they are gonna elevate what we’re able to do quite a bit.”
Leichty also recognized the growth of Nora Kartye, another 6-foot-2 middle who should give Orizotti a “dream” scenario of options on offense.
Playing in the Central Valley Conference is more of a nightmare though as the sport has exploded in the Salem area, including at 6A preseason No. 3 Sprague where the Olympians have won out for the league title for the past three years.
Sprague had its own big addition with Emma Brewer coming over from Salem Academy after helping the Crusaders win the 2A state title last year.
South Salem ended up playing Sprague five times last year, going 1-2 in their league meetings. The Saxons lost to the Olympians in the final of the Clearwater Classic in Bend, but got the final word with the 6A quarterfinals win.
“It’s going to be a wild match every time I’m sure,” Leichty said. “There’s not really going to be a lot of surprises, it’s just going to be who’s going to come out and handle the pressure and play the best.”
Fans won’t have to wait long as South Salem opens league play Sept. 9 against Sprague. The first of at least three duels is set for 6:30 p.m. at Sprague while the other two are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Sept. 24 at South Salem and 6:30 p.m. Oct. 14 at Sprague.
Crane looks to keep winning in 1A
The last time 1A preseason No. 1 Crane lost to a fellow 1A opponent would require flipping back to the 2022 state tournament.
North Douglas got the best of the Mustangs in a 3-2 victory in the quarterfinals. Crane came back to win the next two matches to take home fourth place.
Since then, the Mustangs have won their last 47 meetings against 1A opponents, which includes the 2023 and 2024 state titles. Overall, they are 65-5 in the past two seasons.
And what might be the worst news of all for everyone in 1A is that the 2025 Crane team is almost identical to last year as the Mustangs only lost one senior.
“I think the message is just take it day by day, try to get better every day, but the goal is the same,” Crane head coach Maddye Wester said. “Their goal is to work toward another one. But the message is always doing it together as a team.”
Wester helped kick off the win streak as she took over the Crane program ahead of the 2022 season where the Mustangs fell a couple matches short of the title.
Now in her fourth year, she’s been energized by a Crane athletic program that has found tremendous success in not just volleyball, but really all sports the Mustangs participate in, as seen by two OSAA Cup wins in the past four years.
“It’s been really inspiring, we have some incredible coaches across several different programs,” Wester said. “They’re really here for the kids and creating a really positive and competitive experience.”
The varsity roster this season is made up of nine girls, seven of them juniors in Kendal Nichols, Anita Peila, Emily Clark, Kaitlyn Siegner, Olyvia Curtis, Kamryn Dunten and Claire Grant. Two seniors take the final spots in Ava Bowen and Cara Goss-Bodily.
Siegner led the team in kills last year and also earned first-team All-Tournament at state, meanwhile Dunten, Nichols and Goss-Bodily earned second-team honors.
But for Wester, what makes the 2025 group special is that really anyone on the team can be the leader required for any given moment.
“I have solid kids who can play any position,” Wester said. “You take any one of them out, it doesn’t matter. Normally I could say, ‘It’s this person and this person,’ but I can tell you with full confidence I have kids who contribute fully.”
Those players will get hit with a hard test to start the year, which began with a close 3-2 loss to Vale on opening night on Aug. 28. The Mustangs head to Cascade Christian in Medford for a tournament on Aug. 30 before another tough weekend tournament Sept. 13 at St. Paul.
The competition in 1A is fierce enough, so playing a classification or two above their rank is something the Mustangs have regularly done to help prepare them for whatever may come in the state tournament.
“We’re just looking for opportunities to play different teams that are going to challenge us in different ways,” Wester said. “There’s so many schools (in 1A). Some school could have an incredible freshmen class that comes in and completely changes their level of play and competitiveness. You don’t count anyone out, even from your own league.”
While other programs try to figure out a way to knock the Mustangs off, they’re happy bringing back almost the whole roster.
The familiarity creates a fun atmosphere as the Mustangs try to win a third consecutive state title, which hasn’t been done since Santiam Christian did it in 3A from 2012-2014.
“Obviously it’s a coach’s dream to be returning most of your roster, and it doesn’t happen very often,” Wester said. “It’s so fun to continue building on what we’ve already built as a whole unit … We’re just kind of where we left off and not having to take too many steps back, it’s pretty fun.”
austinw@osaa.org
Subscribe
