A youthful West Platte girls volleyball team played like a team of veterans as they clinched the Class 2 District 14 championship last week at University Academy Charter in Kansas City.
Despite entering the tournament as the No. 3 seed, West Platte showed its true colors by winning nine of 10 sets en route to securing the team’s first district title since 2020.
“This district title means a lot,” West Platte head coach Connor Kellerstrass said. “We have been close the past four seasons and ended up falling short to some very tough teams. It’s nice to finally get one.”
West Platte entered districts as a bit of a wild card. There was minimal familiarity between the Blue Jays and the rest of the teams in the district, but they showed their quality throughout a dominant tournament.
West Platte junior Catelyn Carlson returns a serve from Barstow on Oct. 22 in the district semifinal.
“This year we were placed in a new district with teams who do not normally see us throughout the season,” Kellerstrass said. “We play a tough schedule and took some lumps early in the season, which resulted in us being the No. 3 seed. The team had a goal to win a district championship and accomplished that goal in a big way.”
The Blue Jays opened the district tournament on Oct. 21 with a straight-set victory against bottom-seeded Hogan Prep, who they last faced in 2010. West Platte lost just 13 points across the three sets, taking the first set 25-6, the second set 25-7, and steamrolling through the third set 25-0 as sophomore Amber Rutherford delivered 15 assists and 17 aces on 30 serves without error.
The toughest test of the tournament came on Oct. 22 in the district semifinal against No. 2-seeded Barstow, whom they last faced in 2011. The Blue Jays came out hot with a 25-14 win in the opening set before dropping the second set 25-20, but responded resiliently to take the last two sets with identical 25-18 scores.
In the district championship, West Platte continued to roll through the tournament with a straight-sets victory against top-seeded University Academy for the second time this season.
The Blue Jays took the first set 25-15, the second set 25-21 and a spike from freshman Jaylee Carlson secured the third set 25-16 to clinch the district title.
West Platte freshman Kendall Dover is among the underclassmen who have big roles for the Blue Jays this year.
“I’m just so proud of this team,” Kellserstrass said. “In terms of varsity experience, this is a very young team that has had to learn a lot this season. They are eager to improve and eager to compete which has made the season very enjoyable.”
West Platte has now reached 21 wins, the most for the program since 2019 as they sit with a record of 21-15-2. Their attention turns to the state tournament, which begins on Oct. 30 against district 13 champion Lafayette County.
“The approach is that the journey is not over,” Kellerstrass said. “The girls know there is still work to be done and now they have new goals. We’re excited for next Thursday.”