Girls’ volleyball fights hard to reach CCS

After a season of hard-fought effort, the girls’ volleyball clinched the El Camino League championship and a spot in CCS playoffs with a 3-0 win over Cupertino on Oct. 27. They will be the No. 3 seed in Division III.

Prior to the win over Cupertino, the players honored senior libero Julia Vita for a final time during their Senior Day.

“We were all so excited not only because it was our last game, but also because it was Senior Day, and this game decided our first place spot in leagues,” Vita sad. “There was a lot of emotion before the game; everyone was crying during the ceremony and everyone worked really hard to make my last league game fun.”

The girls won the first game 25-19. In the second game, Cupertino came on stronger with their offensive, but the Falcons were able to win 25-20. The third set was the closest set of the regular season, ending 30-28.

The tension on the court could be felt throughout the stands and on the court as junior setter Dasha Gousseva called out plays. Every point was critical because of how tight the game was, but the girls had solid passing by Vita and hitting by sophomore outside Katie Hulme, leading them to win this crucial game and win the league. The victory brought their overall record to 21-9.

Recently, the team won the white division at the Second Spikefest tournament at Independence High School on Oct. 22. The Falcons went 3-2. According to Hulme, their greatest achievement was beating Cupertino, one of their top league rivals.

Earlier, the team beat the Wilcox Chargers 3-1 on Oct. 20. The girls kept the Chargers at 15 in the first game with their quick sets by Gousseva and fast kills by Hulme, winning 25-15. In the second game, the Falcons triumphed 26-24. In the third set, however, the Falcons fell short 15-25, but with this loss under their belt, the girls knew they had to give it their all and were able to close the game 25-17.

Looking ahead to the playoffs, Vita said, “I really want to win especially since it is my senior year, so it would really make my last season memorable.”