Warrior Volleyball Headed to NWAC Elite Eight for First Time Since 2018

Warrior Volleyball Headed to NWAC Elite Eight for First Time Since 2018
November 17, 2025

Lynnwood, WA - For the first time in 6 years, and the first time in Head Coach Brooke Kaawa's tenure at the helm of the WWCC Volleyball program, the Warriors are headed to the final weekend and Elite Eight of the 2025 NWAC Volleyball Championships! Last weekend, in the North Regional, Walla Walla entered as the #3 seed, lost a heartbreaker in their first match to #2 Lower Columbia, then battled back and claimed the final spot from the regional in the Elite Eight. The Warriors, now 18-11 overall on the season, potentially sit only 3 wins away from claiming the NWAC Volleyball Championship.

 

Walla Walla 2 vs. Lower Columbia 3 (Saturday, November 15th)

 

In the opening match of the NWAC playoffs, Walla Walla got out to the start they would've wanted to have, taking the first set in convincing fashion 25-16. However, it would become a dogfight from then on as Lower Columbia answered in set two with a 25-17 victory, then narrowly defeated the Warriors in the swing set 27-25 to take a 2-1 overall advantage. In set four, Walla Walla put together their best attacking set of the match to win 25-17 and force a fifth and final set. But, again Lower Columbia answered right back with a strong set of their own, winning the match 3-2 with a fifth set score of 15-7. Aubree Zimmer and Natalie Evers both finished in double digits for kills, Kennedy Coleman totalled 25 digs and 3 aces, and Bailee Cornela registered 2 solo blocks in the match.

 

Walla Walla 3 vs. Lane 0 (Saturday, November 15th)

After dropping the first match of the playoffs, it was set to be an interesting case study of how Coach Kaawa's young team would respond. Very quickly they silenced any doubters and put forth a dominating effort to earn a 3-0 victory over Lane. Again, Zimmer and Evers tallied double digit kills, with Kaidyn Maioho adding 7 of her own. Bethany Phillips added a solo block at the net, and as a group, the Warriors scored points on 7 service aces as a squad.

 

Walla Walla 3 vs. Lower Columbia 2 (Sunday, November 16th)

With Edmonds, the host school for the regional, already claiming the first spot in the Elite Eight, it came down to the rematch between Walla Walla and Lower Columbia to decide who would be joining them. Similar to the first meet up, Walla Walla jumped out to the lead in the match with a 25-21 first set victory. Lower Columbia would answer as the Warriors had seen them do before, winning set two 25-19. In set three, the pattern that was beginning to form would be disrupted as WWCC was able to win the pivotal frame 25-23, putting the backs of Lower Columbia up against the wall. After another close battle in set four that resulted in a 25-23 Lower Columbia win, the Warriors would finish off the revenge effort and punch their ticket to the Elite Eight with a 15-10 victory in set five. Aubree Zimmer had a monster match at the net, collecting 19 kills on 56 total attempts. Lauryn York, who was on the assisting end of so many Warrior points throughout the weekend, finished the match with 41 assists, and this time it was Natalie Evers who registered a couple of solo blocks of her own.

 

What's next?

The Walla Walla Community College Women's Volleyball team will make the quick trip over to Pasco, WA where the 2025 NWAC Volleyball Championships are set to be hosted by Columbia Basin College. Action begins on Friday where Walla Walla is pitted against Rogue Community College in an 8:00 PM match. The Osprey, 24-6 overall, claimed the South Region Regular Season Championship and advanced to the Elite Eight as the #1 seed from the South Regional. The winner of that match will take on the winner of the 5:00 PM match between Linn-Benton and Bellevue. On the other side of the bracket, many of the participating teams are made up of familiar faces as Walla Walla is one of four East Region teams who qualified for the Elite Eight. Yakima Valley, Treasure Valley, and Spokane are all competing for their shot at the championship and could hypothetically face off against the Warriors in the final contest of the year.