When looking at a November calendar, you’ll find a few constants. Veteran’s Day on the 11th. Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday. And Toutle Lake playing in the Class 2B state volleyball tournament.

The sixth-ranked Ducks are making their 20th consecutive state appearance when they tangle with 12th-ranked Reardan in the tournament’s opening round at 2 p.m. Friday at the Yakima SunDome.

TL is one of five area teams involved in state competition this weekend. Ninth-ranked Castle Rock is at the Class 1A tourney at the SunDome Thursday and Friday; Three Rivers Christian is competing in the Class 1B tourney at the SunDome on Friday and Saturday; and Mark Morris and R.A. Long are playing in the Class 2A state event Friday and Saturday at the Toyota Center in Kennewick.

The Ducks (16-1) have brought home state hardware in 14 of the past 19 years. From 1992 to 2000, Toutle was in the state title game eight times, winning championships in 1997, ’98 and ’99. Last year, the team finished seventh after falling to Riverside Christian in the fourth-place match.

“We’ve been strong for a number of years, and that has made the girls think a little more about tradition,” Toutle coach Don Merzoian said. “They feel some pressure to perform, but they started feeling that pressure at the district tournament.”

Toutle had little trouble rolling to its sixth consecutive Southwest 2B District volleyball title last weekend following victories over Napavine, Wahkiakum and Adna in the title match.

“We had some ups and downs during the season, and I don’t think we played to our potential until we reached the district tournament,” Merzoian said. “We have a good group of girls with club volleyball experience, but they know the other teams have placed big targets on their backs out of respect because of the strength of our team.”

After the Reardan match, the Ducks will face either seventh-ranked Darrington or 11th-ranked Kittitas, with a possible matchup against second-ranked Tekoa-Oakesdale in the semifinals. Top-ranked LaConner, along with third-ranked LaSalle and fourth-ranked Colfax, are on the opposite end of the 16-team bracket.

“We know that Kittitas is undefeated, but we don’t know much about their league,” Merzoian said. “We had to face Colfax in the second round last year, and we know Tekoa-Oakesdale will be tough. There are some new names in this year’s tournament and it’s hard to know much about them. But we’re still looking at the best 16 teams in the state.”

The Ducks boast a balanced attack offensively and defensively, with Caitlin Perrin leading the way at the district tourney with 33 combined kills. Tiffany Wend added 27 and Peyton Hoff chipped in 17 with seven blocks.

Hayley Gorton and Abby Gorton are the team’s assist leaders, while Hayley didn’t miss a serve in 65 attempts at district. Jamie Wall, Maddi Timm, Kelsey Kent, Christian Carlson and Brandi Malakoff also have played well this season.

Class 2A

Mark Morris secured its fourth consecutive state tournament appearance and eighth in the past nine years after topping defending state champ Tumwater in its district semifinal match.

R.A. Long also beat Tumwater in a consolation round matchup at district to give the Lumberjills their first state tournament berth since 2006.

Both 12th-ranked MM (14-3) and 16th-ranked RAL (10-7) are seeded into the same half of the state bracket, and could face each other in a semifinal matchup. The Monarchs, who placed eighth at last year’s tournament, open with 13th-ranked Anacortes at 9 a.m. Friday, and will play either fifth-ranked East Valley of Yakima or third-ranked Fife in the second round.

R.A. Long plays seventh-ranked West Valley of Spokane in a 9 a.m. opening-round match also on Friday, and will meet either second-ranked Archbishop Murphy or 10th-ranked Grandview in the second round.

The other end of the tournament bracket features top-ranked Burlington-Edison, fourth-ranked Pullman and sixth-ranked Selah.

The tournament concludes Saturday with the championship match at 6:30 p.m.

Class 1A

Castle Rock won its second consecutive 1A district title and is making its fourth straight state tournament appearance on the strength of eight all-SWW 1A Trico players.

Freshman Tierney Uhlenkott was named the league’s Most Valuable Player, and first-team picks included freshmen Maddi Seidl and Macee Utecht. Second-teamers were senior Heather Beck, junior Ashley Moore and sophomore Megan Moore, and honorable mention selections included juniors Ellie Halladay and Charlie Hamilton.

Jeana Bayes, who led the ninth-ranked Rockets to a 16-1 record, was named the league’s co-Coach of the Year.

CR faces 12th-ranked Connell in the opening round of the state tournament today at 1, and plays either sixth-ranked Cascade or 13th-ranked Cascade Christian in a second-round matchup. A pair of victories would put the Rockets on a collision course with top-ranked King’s in the semifinals, which defeated them in last year’s state title match.

The continues Friday with the championship at 7:30 p.m.

Class 1B

After losing both of its matches at last year’s Class 1B state tourney, Three Rivers Christian hopes to take the next step by winning a match — and possibly bring home a trophy.

In only their fourth year of play, the Eagles (14-4) took a huge step by winning the Southwest 1B District crown with a 23-25, 25-17, 18-25, 25-16, 15-7 win over Kings Way Christian in the title match.

The 13th-ranked Eagles open state against 15th-ranked Klickitat, and will face either 12th-ranked Lummi or sixth-ranked Almira/Coulee-Hartline in the second round.

The tournament concludes Saturday with semifinals and trophy rounds, culminating with the championship match at 7 p.m.