The Cavs varsity volleyball team swept the Cristo Rey Saints at home with a set count of 3-0 on Sept. 24.
“I felt really good about that game,” Coach Jason Kreps said. “What’s nice is watching the team, growing through the season and being able to play efficiently.”
Kreps praised the spikes of senior outside hitter Vanessa Escobar and the serves of sophomore setter Kaitlyn Dias, who kept her serve for 17 consecutive points and threatened a clean sheet in the second set.
This lighter game against the Saints allowed the Cavs to rotate in players after a strong performance of 25-8 in the first set.
As the Cavs entered the second set, Kreps started to practice newer rotations and strive for excellence.
In the second set, Dias started with the service, continuing with 17 more points.
Sophomore libero Zoe Genetos said the feeling was electric.
“We were all focused on keeping her serving, just watching her make it every time was so fun,” she said.
The third set was brought in with a strong shout of “Let’s go Cavs!” from senior blocker Vivian Connor. Kreps described set three as steady, a tribute to the consistency of his team.
Genetos attributed the team’s consistent performance to the volleyball clinic the team ran on Sept. 22.
“We got to play with the younger kids in middle school, and it gave us a nice chance to review basics like going over passing, practicing serving and then swinging through,” Genetos said. “I think that really helped us today and got us back into the motion of competing.”
Kreps said he was proud of his team’s ability to continue fighting and playing at their best.
“Even though we had a strong lead, they wanted to keep fighting hard to keep that mentality of pushing up, which is very good. You want to keep playing strong,” Kreps said.
Kreps is excited about the future.
“Western Sierra is the next game, they’re first in our league. We lost to them last season. But in our first game against them last season, we played our best volleyball, and the girls are fired up for the next game. They’re super excited.”
The Cavs’ next home game is against the league-leading Western Sierra Wolves on Sept. 28 at 6 p.m.
— By Adam Akins
— Photos by Kali Wells
