Girls’ volleyball (1-0) won 3-2 in its away tournament game against Sage Hill High on Sept. 6. Although the Bulldogs lost the first two sets, they were able to regain their footing for the third, fourth and fifth sets, successfully pulling off a reverse sweep by the end of the game. Their next game is a home game against Woodbridge High on Oct. 10.
Co-captain, outside hitter and senior Mari Alvarado-Rivera’s offensive hits throughout the latter sets and co-captain, libero and senior Izzy Macasero’s defensive plays in the fifth set were notable in the Bulldogs’ win. Another important play came from setter and sophomore Jane Park, who netted the fifteenth point for the Bulldogs to win the final set, according to head girls volleyball coach Heidi Martasian.
“Considering we already had a reverse sweep earlier in the year, this team is one that’s used to having played a lot of five centers, so all they needed was proof of my belief in them,” Martasian said. “My comment after losing the second set was just, I got two words, and that’s ‘reverse sweep.’ That was just kind of the motto for the rest of the night.”
The first two sets felt slower and the team was navigating through ways to score points while making adjustments, according to Macasero. The match’s turning points were the successful free ball in the fifth set by Macasero and the deep set dump by Park that won the team’s last point, according to Martasian.
“Throughout most of that fifth set, the scores were really close and the game was super tight, and it was just like, one team would go on a run, and then the other team would,” Macasero said. “I feel like [the free ball] was specifically a turning point because it broke up the tension on the team on our side. That specific moment brought everyone’s energy up.”
Through this game, the team learned to focus on the game instead of the outcomes, especially since the game went up to five sets, according to Macasero. The team also ran a different offense, consisting of a modified system of five hitters and one setter where the hitters remain in position after their rotations. The strategy has been working, but the team should look forward to improving their service and making sure their heads stay in the game, according to Alvarado-Rivera.
“I think [the team] just really learned to believe in themselves and rely on their experience,” Martasian said. “I think they kind of know that the serve and pass game is a strength of ours and that if we can win that, then we can beat kind of any team within our division, within our league.”
