The Varsity Girls Volleyball team is off to a promising start with an overall record of 9-8 and 2-4 in Rio Hondo. The Rams finished fifth last year in league, but this season the girls are striving to place third, which would secure them a spot in C.I.F.
The team has improved because some players have gained more experience through club teams, and the girls communicate better on the court.
“This year we are better prepared, mentally and physically, to face our league opponents. There is an increase in the overall energy and focus and we are definitely louder this year too,” Senior Paulina Lin said. “Our team is a lot closer also because we have played together for a longer amount of time.”
Another factor that has helped the Rams is some changes to their training regime. The girls had hell week during the summer to refine their fundamentals. Now during league, the girls try to practice more game situations as they no longer use serving and setting machines.
“It’s definitely better having no machines, because the serving and setting machines are predictable,” Junior Greta Xiong said. “It allows our hitters and passers to get more practice together, so they know what to do and where to go during the games.”
The Varsity girls lost the first two preseason games against Pasadena and San Gabriel, but the team regrouped and managed to secure its first victory against Mark Keppel with a score of 3-1. Then, the Rams placed second out of ten teams in the El Monte tournament winning three games and losing two.
They continued their hot streak ending preseason with two more wins against Rosemead and Schurr, with scores of 3-0 and 3-1.
In their first league game, the girls suffered a disappointing loss against the La Cañada Spartans. The girls made a few adjustments and beat Blair 3-0.
Then they faced their rivals the San Marino Titans, a team the Rams have been unable to beat in years. The Titans came out strong crushing the Rams 25-17 in the first set to claim an early lead.
However, the Rams did not back down, and came back to win the next three sets defeating San Marino and breaking the curse that lasted for about ten years. This win is a sure indicator of the improvements the ladies have made since last year.
“We lost the first set because we made some unnecessary errors like missing serves,” Xiong said. “In the second set we were initially down 1-11, but we had one rally that got us pumped up, changing the momentum in our favor, helping us come back and win the set 25-23. The momentum continued to stay in our favor as were finally able to beat our rivals 3-1.”
Even though the Rams lost their next two games against the South Pasadena Tigers and La Canda Spartans, the team’s record so far of 2-4 in Rio Hondo gives them a good chance of placing third and securing a C.I.F. spot this year.