SISTERS — When state athletic classifications realigned a year ago, shifting several schools and programs to different levels of competition, Sisters was one of the schools to make a move. The high school shifted from Class 4A down to 3A, and moved from the Oregon West Conference into the Mountain Valley Conference.

The Sisters volleyball program, which had been a dominant 4A program for years, was seen as a heavy favorite to claim its seventh state championship by moving down a level in competition. But as the No. 1 seed in the 3A volleyball field, Sisters was upset in the semifinals by Valley Catholic.

“Everyone thought it was going to be easy,” said senior middle blocker Bailey Robertson. “It’s not how it works.”

Sisters has proven in the past four seasons — including the season shortened by COVID-19 — that it is a team worthy of being crowned state champions. In the past three years, the Outlaws have advanced to at least the state volleyball semifinals, and have been to two championship games — all while competing at the 4A level.

Through all the matches and tournaments during the past three years, Sisters has won 60 of its 72 games.

And yet, with all the wins in both the regular season and the postseason, a state title still eludes the Outlaws, which has won six state titles (1996, 2007, 2009, 2014, 2016, 2017) and made 10 title game appearances.

“When you go to the tournament and you don’t reach the expectations that everyone has for you, it is almost like when you come back, everyone deems it as a failure,” said coach Rory Rush. “It is hard to get over that hump and realize that just because you didn’t win and didn’t reach the goal that the team had, it doesn’t mean that the whole season has been a failure. We have had to work on putting that aside and saying it is a new year and that it is part of the journey.”

Gracie Vohs, now a senior, has been there for the whole journey — the regular season wins, the conference titles, the No. 1 seeds in the tournaments, and unfortunately, the conclusion to seasons she had wished had ended differently.

“It has been frustrating at the end because we have known that we have been so close,” said Vohs, the reigning 3A Player of the Year. “I’m a competitive person, so it takes a long time to process (the tournament losses). But I have had to change my mindset. Not many teams can say they make it to the tournament every year. When I put it in that perspective, I’ve had a great high school experience, even if it isn’t the outcome that we have wanted.”

But with a fresh perspective, and a new season beginning Tuesday, Sisters volleyball is set to once again make the climb up the 3A volleyball mountain.

Among returning starters, the Outlaws have Vohs and second-team all-state outside hitter Gracelyn Myhre, along with nine others and six rotation players back from last year’s third-place team. The team also has six players who stand taller than 5-foot-10, which is always an advantage.

“They play a lot of volleyball, so their IQ is really high,” said Rush, last year’s 3A Coach of the Year. “I think we have grown emotionally and mentally. I think we learned a lot from what we experienced at the end of last season. I think a year of maturity really helped.”

Sisters will have to replace its long-time setter and captain Hannah Fendall, who graduated, and will look to Holly Davis — younger sister of Outlaw great Greta Davis, now playing volleyball at Sacramento State — to take that role.

“Volleyball is in her blood,” Rush said. “She will do well in that role.”

With a roster loaded with hitters, the Outlaws could deploy a two-setter lineup, with senior Mia Monaghan also taking on setting duties.

The Outlaws open the season with some heavy competition. Starting with two games on Tuesday against bigger local teams in Caldera and Crook County, the team then faces Burns (3A state runners-up) and 4A Baker on Thursday.

“I’m feeling good,” Robertson said. “We are feeling really connected, going to team camp really helped us come together. Everyone is super supportive of each other.”

“We definitely have the talent this year. I think we just have to stay mentally strong,” Vohs said. “We just have to have the tools that we need to do that. The whole team is just really excited to get started.”