On Friday, April 4th, the Sahuaro JV and Varsity Boys’ Volleyball teams played against Rincon University High School. Though it was a great night for JV, winning their match in the first two sets, the varsity team wasn’t as lucky. Since the beginning of their season, the JV team has won six games and lost only one. Varsity, on the other hand, has a record of 9-11 as of Monday, April 7th.
This is their fourth consecutive time coming up short against the Rangers, but they didn’t make it easy, especially in the first set. Coming up on 25 points, both teams decided to go into overtime. They played for about five more serves, though it didn’t prove to do much because the score still came out to 29-27 with a loss.
In each set, they made it hard for the opposing team to reach the top, but some more than others. After the first set, it became easier for the Rangers to take charge, ending the second set with 25-12. In the third set, they gained a bit more momentum, but it still wasn’t good enough, concluding the game with 25-18.
Rincon’s record now stands at 13-5 and was led to victory by Nic Sanchez and Liam Burke as their leading offensive players. Our offense was led by Damien Ritter and Ethan Geoffroy as they both made three kills apiece. Another notable player was David Gutierrez, who made nine assists and two aces.
Gavin Kawaguchi, one of the JV captains and a varsity player, praised the work of the JV team not only against the Rangers, but in competition with many other teams this season. Even though Gavin’s a captain, he knows the extent of how hard the team works every time the team has a match, and especially that the responsibility of every game falls on every player’s shoulders.
Reflecting on the game, Gavin made it clear he was somewhat disappointed at the game’s turnout, stating, “Yeah, I was slightly at the fact that we lost, but still happy with how we played due to keeping the game to a strong fight against Rincon, a team that had almost beat Salpointe the day prior.”
Also playing for the Varsity team, Gavin explains that while their season started shaky, they eventually found their rhythm and made great efforts with each set, and put up a respectable fight even if the game didn’t play in their favor.
Though they didn’t win against the Rangers, they did perform well, with amazing technique. Coming up on their game on Wednesday, April 9th, the Boys Volleyball Team took on Mica Mountain at home. The JV team won yet again, and the Varsity team took an unflattering loss. These sets’ scores were as follows: 25-9, 25-17, and 25-15.
Their next game will be at home against Walden Grove, and you won’t want to miss the amazing energy flowing through the players and the crowd. Come out and support our teams!
