The Girls Varsity Volleyball team started off the season with a home game against Pasadena Polytechnic on Sept. 2, ending with a 3-1 loss.
Due to many minor mistakes like missing serves, hitting into the net and poor passing, the team was not able to play to its best ability. Overall, its biggest mistake was the lack of communication on the court.
During the first set, the Lady Rams were leading with a score of 25-20. However, the score began to swing back and forth between them and the Panthers in the second set, ending with a 27-25 loss for the Rams. Despite their hard work and determination, they were not able to pull through in the third and fourth sets either.
Although the Lady Rams suffered defeat, they hope to gain a comeback during their next games against San Gabriel on Sept. 8.
“I feel that we have a long way to go before we can play at a competitive level because we are a rather young team with only two seniors graduating this year,” Captain Junior Darcee Young said. “However I am excited to play with this group of girls and I am definitely excited to see what our team can do this year.”
Due to the small size of the team, players are taking precautions to prevent injuries by wearing protective gear, warming up and stretching.
“We already have four injuries on our team so starting off the season with almost half of our team injured is not ideal,” Senior Sarah Tomason said. “Nevertheless, I have confidence that this season is a good one.”
Despite these setbacks the team hopes to have a successful season by creating stronger bonds and better communication skills. With that in mind, the ladies began the rigorous journey to reach C.I.F. with summer practices. Since the end of school, they trained two to three hours each practice, improved individual skills and grew stronger as a team.
“One of our main obstacles is not having enough height on the team this year,” Young said. “Height is crucial since our main hitters graduated last year so we need to be able to rebuild before the season starts.”
With the departure of a couple graduated players, the team has not suffered significant damage, although two of the girls were all-around players and starters. The team remains strong with the aid of their libero, setter and best middle hitter.
“I expect most of the team to know what they’re doing since most of us have played before,” Senior Katie Xiong said. “I hope we will improve together and become more than just a team.”