The girls’ volleyball team is trying to be a force in the De Anza League this year. So far they’ve had mixed results.
They won their first league game against Homestead Sept. 24 (3-0) and then lost to Los Gatos 3-0 Sept. 29 and to Palo Alto 4-1 Oct. 1. After the two losses, the Falcons beat Gunn 3-1 Oct. 6 and later on picked up another victory against Los Altos Oct. 8 (3-0).
“We started off with the two toughest teams in our league and lost,” said junior setter and opposite hitter Hannah Nielson. “Besides that, we have been playing very well and have been working as a team.”
As of Oct. 15, the Falcons were in third place out of the seven teams in the league.
“This year we actually have a chance,” said Nielson. “If we work on all the things that we need to we can be at the top.”
While the team is working on improving their techniques such as blocking and receiving passes from services, the Falcons also said they need to work on the mental aspects of the game.
“Sometimes we get down and we can’t get back up,” said senior libero Emily Baba. “It’s kind of mental. We think that we can’t beat them so then we don’t try as hard.”
Another obstacle is the inexperience of the new middles. While coach Brad Frederickson has been working with new middles, sophomores Talia Sisco and Chloe Knight, and junior Megan Brading, on their technique separately at practice, they still have a lot to learn. But even under all the pressure, the new middles are bringing their own special something to help the team rise to the top.
“They bring a positive attitude to the team,” said Baba. ” [Because of this] our team is a lot closer than it was last year.”
The closeness of the team is playing to a huge advantage for the team.
“There is no drama [among girls] at all and our practices are really fun,” said Nielson. “Everyone gets along and coach treats everyone as equals.”
The Falcons played away at Mountain View and lost Oct. 12 [1-3]. The Falcons play at Homestead Oct. 14 and at Westmont Oct. 19 but due to printing deadlines results could not be printed.
