l Winner : SCCS Jaguars
Loser: International Griffins
Scores of sets: SCCS won first set 25-23, SCCS won second set 25-19 (There was no third set)
What was at stake: League Championship
Where played: in the SCIS gym
When: Friday afternoon
Game Conditions: Big crowd of International fans. Only a handful of SCCS supporters. Both teams were at full strength with no significant injuries. Weather was not a factor.
Background: The two teams have always been closely matched. International won last year, also in “straight sets.” In the two “regualr season games,” SCCS had won the first, and International had won the second .
Your notes on the play:
First set – SCCS took early lead 8-4. International tied game at 15-15. Teams stayed even to 23-23 when SCCS made two quick points, one on a spike by Aldana Roda, and the other on an International error when attempted set-up went into the net and couldn’t be retrieved. Both teams played very well. On some points the ball passed back and forth as many as 20 times. Many great “digs” and retrievals of balls headed out-of-bounds.
Second set – International took charge early, going ahead 10-6. SCCS came back slowly ,not getting even until the score was 18-18. At that point International seemed to lose concentration and make unforced errs while SCCS played without making mistakes, though both teams made great play. Aldana Roda spiked one ball down the line with her back to the net. Griffin Stefania Gioto blocked three attempted spikes by the Jaguar front line. Both teams served hard, neither had a server that could dominate play. SCCS seemed to surge through the last seven points to win.
Other interesting points:
It was clear that both teams had a lot of respect for the other. After the final handshake they stayed on the court and applauded one another. . . . Internatioinal obviouisly felt that though beaten, they were not disgraced . . . . The SCCS players knew how close they had come to losing control of the second set and having to go to a third, tie-breaking 15-point game. . . . The SCCS players dumped the wáter container on their coach, Aleksander Mahdik. . . . International coach Eli Vilar gathered her players and congratulated them for a good effort. “You game it your all,” Vilar told them. “You didn’t leave anything out there on the court.” . . . . .SCCS captain said, “I thought they had us in the second set but we showed that we could take the pressure and come back.” . . . . . The SCCS players did a “victory lap” around the gym hold the chapionship trophy high.
POSSIBLE SOLUTION:
The Cooperative girls varsity volleyball team captured the League Championship with a hard-fought, but convincing, straight sets victory over International in the Griffins gym Friday afternoon. The Jaguars took the opening set 25-23, then came from behind to win the second set 25-18.
In an outstanding example of good sportsmanship and mutual respect, the two teams stayed on the court and applauded one another after the final handshake, and before the Jaguar girls took a victory lap around the gym holding the championship trophy high.
The game was a worthy chapter in what has been a close and intense rivalry between the two teams. International had won the championship a year ago in a similarly intense chamìonship game against the Jaguars, and in the two regular season games this year each team had won the game played in its home gym.
In terms of spectator support, International had a clear advantage, as there were only a handful of Jaguar fans present. However, it was the Jaguars who jumped out to an early lead, 8-4, in the early going. And the Jaguars stayed in front until the Griffins caught up and tied the score at 15-15. From that point the teams seemed to trade points on long rallies in which the ball was sometimes volleyed back and forth across the net twenty times or more.
One great play by one side seemed to invite a great play on the other. Both teams served hard -- and both teams returned serves well. The action sparkled with outstanding defensive plays as defenders thwarted attempted spikes with last-second, one-hand digs, or retrieved balls seeming headed irretrievably out of bounds.
Then with the score tied 23-23 the Jaguars came up with the two successive points they needed -- one on a spike and the second on a Griffing setting error -- to win the first set 25-23.
In the second set it was International that seemed to have the momentum, taking a 10-6 lead, and apparently well on its way to forcing a third and deciding set.
However, the Jaguars made a slow. steady comeback. As in the first set, play seemed evenly balanced. Jaguar captain Aldana Roda scored on a spike she hit down the line with her back to the net. But then Griffin Stephanie Gioto responded with three great blocks at the net. What made the difference was that International was making a few mistakes, while the Jaguars were making almost none.
When the Jaguars tied the score at 18-18 the International players seemed to lose focus, while the Jaguar performance continued to be almost flawless. The end came with remarkable suddenness as the Jaguars won seven points in a row, mostly on long rallies, taking the set 25-18 to win the match and the championship.
POSSIBLE SOLUTION:
The Cooperative girls varsity volleyball team captured the League Championship with a hard-fought, but convincing, straight sets victory over International in the Griffins gym Friday afternoon. The Jaguars took the opening set 25-23, then came from behind to win the second set 25-18.
In an outstanding example of good sportsmanship and mutual respect, the two teams stayed on the court and applauded one another after the final handshake, and before the Jaguar girls took a victory lap around the gym holding the championship trophy high.
The game was a worthy chapter in what has been a close and intense rivalry between the two teams. International had won the championship a year ago in a similarly intense chamìonship game against the Jaguars, and in the two regular season games this year each team had won the game played in its home gym.
In terms of spectator support, International had a clear advantage, as there were only a handful of Jaguar fans present. However, it was the Jaguars who jumped out to an early lead, 8-4, in the early going. And the Jaguars stayed in front until the Griffins caught up and tied the score at 15-15. From that point the teams seemed to trade points on long rallies in which the ball was sometimes volleyed back and forth across the net twenty times or more.
One great play by one side seemed to invite a great play on the other. Both teams served hard -- and both teams returned serves well. The action sparkled with outstanding defensive plays as defenders thwarted attempted spikes with last-second, one-hand digs, or retrieved balls seeming headed irretrievably out of bounds.
Then with the score tied 23-23 the Jaguars came up with the two successive points they needed -- one on a spike and the second on a Griffing setting error -- to win the first set 25-23.
In the second set it was International that seemed to have the momentum, taking a 10-6 lead, and apparently well on its way to forcing a third and deciding set.
However, the Jaguars made a slow. steady comeback. As in the first set, play seemed evenly balanced. Jaguar captain Aldana Roda scored on a spike she hit down the line with her back to the net. But then Griffin Stephanie Gioto responded with three great blocks at the net. What made the difference was that International was making a few mistakes, while the Jaguars were making almost none.
When the Jaguars tied the score at 18-18 the International players seemed to lose focus, while the Jaguar performance continued to be almost flawless. The end came with remarkable suddenness as the Jaguars won seven points in a row, mostly on long rallies, taking the set 25-18 to win the match and the championship.
