By: Staff Writer Michelle Dalarossa
MSJ Varsity Boys’ Volleyball competed against San Ramon High School in the first round of the North Coast Section (NCS) Championship on Tuesday, May 10. After a little more than an hour of intense and fast-paced playing, MSJ lost their final game by a slim six points.
After winning the MVAL Championships, the team went into their first NCS match with plenty of experience and victories under their belt. The first game began with rapid-fire rallying as San Ramon took the lead and MSJ remained just one or two points shy of a tie. A sizeable crowd in the bleachers constantly cheered on the Warriors, leaving the atmosphere charged with energy and anticipation. However, a few careless mistakes like not calling the ball left MSJ struggling to surpass the other team and San Ramon won the first game with a score of 25-17.
The intensity of the match only increased during the second game with MSJ showing noticeable improvement and taking the lead for the first time after several skillful blocks, dives, and spikes. The Warriors adjusted their previous communication mishaps and worked seamlessly together, constantly keeping the opposing team one point behind and eliciting massive cheers from the audience. After a couple of errors San Ramon regained the lead and kept it, winning game two 25-21.
Despite the losses, the crowd remained hopeful and lively, keeping the morale high and the atmosphere positive. The Warriors entered their third game stronger than ever before and quickly took the lead, determined not to let the other team get ahead. A couple of disputed calls from the referee elicited cries of outrage from the audience, but MSJ persevered and remained head to head with San Ramon. However, several exceptional blocks from the opposing team turn the tide of the game and soon San Ramon was up by 3, 16-13. They kept the lead despite valiant efforts from MSJ and won the third game 25-19. “We played with no regrets. Even though we lost we did not regret losing some points because the atmosphere and the points we played made up for it,” said Senior Captain Andrew Liu.
Although MSJ will not be moving onto the next round of the NCS Championships, their final game displayed their ability and team unity with exciting rallies, skillful saves, and overall strong playing. “Since this was our first NCS game in 3 seasons, we were all obviously really excited, and when the game started our nervousness showed, as we started out slow and made a few errors. As the game went on, however, we fought back and while the final result was obviously not what we wanted, I’m proud of how everyone played their hearts out, and most importantly, had fun while doing it. Overall, we had a great season, going 11-1 and winning MVALs, and becoming a family in the process,” said senior Team Member Nick Wen.
Photo Courtesy: Isis Chu
