By RYAN ARENA
L’Observateur

EDGARD — West St. John won its last two matches of the regular season and will roll into the playoffs with a solid base of momentum after besting White Castle and Donaldsonville in non-district action.

The Rams (12-6) downed Donaldsonville on the road in four games Thursday, 25-16, 22-25, 25-14 and 25-15.

Dmyriah Herbert had a match-high nine kills. Kaieonne Sorapuru served four aces and Brittany August three. Amaya Lumar and Maya Trench each had two kills.

The Rams dropped the first set against White Castle Wednesday but rallied to win the final three to capture a 10-25, 25-13, 25-17 and 25-21 victory at home.

Tre’Shaun Trench made seven digs and served two aces, while Maya Trench had eight kills and five digs for WSJ. Herbert made six kills. Mychelle Lumar had four kills, while August served three aces. Sorapuru served two aces and made four digs.

“Our hitters really showed up and gave us a spark in our last two matches,” West St. John coach Glenda Mattos said. “Dmyriah was all over the court. She was our hot hitter and she was putting it down with authority.”

The Rams fell in their final district match of the season, in three games to Central Catholic Monday, 25-11, 25-17 and 25-12.

Sorapuru, Lumar and Herbert each had three kills.

West St. John looks likely to host a playoff match for the second consecutive season, and will find out for sure when postseason brackets are released early next week.

Last year, the Rams defeated Patrick Taylor to earn the first postseason home win in team history.

This season, Mattos said the goal is to extend the team’s playoff run further: nearly the entire roster of last season’s bi-district winner is back.

“This is what we’ve been working for,” Mattos said. “We got the big win last season, and my hope has been to get my girls farther along. We’re excited to have that chance now.”