Varsity girls beat NAIS in nail-biting first volleyball game of season
The Lady Sharks kick off the season with a decisive victory against NAIS in the Shark Tank
On September 11th, in our very own Shark Tank, the girls varsity volleyball team beat NAIS 3-0 to win their first official SISAC game of the season. The varsity girls have been practicing for months now, demonstrating their unwavering dedication even before school started.
The Shark Tank buzzed with excitement as the bleachers filled up promptly. Students from all grades brought in their favorite snacks and beverages to enjoy during the game. Although this was only the first game of the season, volleyball games are known for the crazy energy that crowds bring– and they brought it.
When the opponent team, NAIS, made their way into the Shark Tank, the audience craned their necks, squinting to check out the competition. However, not an ounce of intimidation reached Lady Sharks– they were confident and laser-focused.
As both teams began their warmups, an excited Coach Kate Bruehler reflected, “…It’s my first time as a varsity coach… the girls have been working hard and I can’t wait to see how this season turns out for them.”
The sound of the first whistle ripped through the air and chatter from the bleachers died down. It was NAIS to serve. The ball sped over the net, but the girls got it back up and hit it over. The first set started off a little slow with some missed serves and drop-balls on both sides. Nonetheless, as our players started to get comfortable and build some momentum, they showed extraordinary determination. The NAIS girls had consistently lethal serves, forcing the Sharks to scramble to get the ball back over. Point by point the Sharks built up a lead, displaying solid attacks and relentless defense. Sharks came out on top for set 1, with a score of 25:21.
The second set started off with a bang. The team played incredible defense and built up an impressive lead. Towards the middle of the set, however, they lost their focus and became disorganized on defense, which resulted in the other team catching up in points. As the Sharks huddled up, it seemed like they were acknowledging what was going wrong. The crowd roared in support as they could visibly see the girls shaking themselves out of the rut. From then on, the girls did a better job of communicating on defense.
Even the most powerful serves were passed back to the setter, and they triumphed 25-17.
Now that the game was won, the third set was a chance for bench players to get some experience. As the starters rested, they, along with the audience, continued to cheer and applaud. The bench showed equal persistence, but fell just short of victory, with a score of 12-15.
Post-game, middle hitter Jessie Wu (12B), who couldn’t play because o injury, reflected on their performance as a team, “Although we won, we weren’t really satisfied with how we played…we’ve played better and lost before…we’re still figuring out our rotations and trying to get more organized and we’ll come back stronger.” The Lady Sharks started off the season strong, but still have a long way to go. Stay tuned to hear about the rest of their SISAC journey!
Featured Image—Jessica Kuo slams the ball in an over-hand serve, tallying up another point against NAIS Courtesy of Luke Cheng (12B)
By Brendan Wang