Every year, one of the most anticipated events of BISV’s Spirit Week is the Girls’ Varsity volleyball game. This year, the bleachers were packed with students, many staying well past five o’clock. The Bobcats played the Nueva Mavericks, a school that has emerged as a rival to the Bobcats in recent years.
Opening the game, the Bobcats and Mavericks went back and forth, trading blows using their outside hitters, as the blocking struggled on both sides to keep up with either attacking hitter. Ultimately, a late 5-point surge by Nueva snatched away a thin Bobcat lead, winning them the first set 25-23.
During the second set, many people had begun to stream into the gym to watch the game. As more students packed into the crowds, a key hit by Hanna Y. near the middle of the second set straight over the defensive Maverick block, sending a roar through the usually quiet BISV gym. Following the play, the Bobcats gained an enormous amount of momentum, going on two big scoring runs while their defense fended off Nueva’s offense. This ended the set 25-18, tying up the overall score 1-1 and bringing hopes of victory up for the Bobcats, cheered on by the BISV students.
By set 3, the Maverick offense changed its strategy to using their outside to hit difficult shots, leading to a huge push and a four-point lead. The Bobcats retaliated after a timeout by putting pressure on a weak Nueva right-back corner, leading to three late runs that the Mavericks failed to recover from. Despite steady gains by Nueva, BISV held the lead and ended the third set 25-20, putting them one set away from victory.
Right off the bat in set 4, each side went on huge 6-point runs, but unfortunately, the Bobcats slowed down soon after. Despite the lead in sets, the Bobcats played more slowly and with more mistakes, leading to the Mavericks scoring consecutive points while the Bobcats were unable to respond. However, just before the end of the set, the Bobcats regained some momentum, gaining three final points before the Mavericks closed it out 25-19.
The fifth set in volleyball is played to 15 points. Even though both teams were exhausted and sore, the Bobcats put up a strong fight, leading 8-3. From then on, they pressed the advantage, mounting a 15-8 victory, giving BISV the win after over two hours of grueling play.
The Bobcats’ schedule has been filled with close games like this one, such as a 3-2 victory over Gunn High on September 4 and a 2-3 loss to Summit Shasta on September 30. It goes to show how competitive the division has gotten recently. Despite that, the team hopes to push as far as they can in the division rankings, and to beat Design Tech on October 9th to defend their second-place standing.
