In a busy week on the volleyball court, Escalon’s varsity girls had one non-league contest, a Trans-Valley League game against Riverbank and then participated in the Stockton Classic Tournament.
They started off the week with Big Valley Grace in non-league play, sweeping to a 25-20, 26-24, 25-15 win.
Stats leaders were: Grace Ferreira 25 digs; Emily Vickers 14 kills, Mandy Murphy nine kills; Rylie Lattig and Carsyn Hood with 15 assists each; Gianna Bava, Mandy Murphy, and Emily Vickers with three aces each; Carsyn Hood two blocks.
Back on the court for a Thursday night match with Riverbank, it was a TVL win for the varsity squad, 25-5, 25-19, 25-1. Riverbank pushed the Lady Cougars in the middle set after a big Escalon win in the first. They were able to reset after getting through the second and never let Riverbank get anything going in the third and final set.
Vickers had five kills and seven aces; Murphy added 16 kills. Lattig notched 25 assists; Ferreira had eight digs on the night and Madellyn Spurgeon served up three aces.
Saturday, Oct. 9 saw the girls travel to the Stockton Classic for a full day of tournament play.
“We went 3-1 in the Stockton Classic, finishing first in the Silver Division and fifth overall,” said head coach Teresa Williamson.
The girls defeated Summit Shasta (26-24, 25-10), lost to Amador Valley (18-25, 20-25), and recorded victories over Pitman (25-18, 25-10), and Vista del Lago (25-18, 31-29, 15-13).
“Amador Valley was the only team we lost to, and they ended up taking first in the entire tournament. We were on fire this tournament, we played with so much heart and passion,” Williamson said. “Our defense was top notch, our offense was unstoppable, and we served amazing so the other teams had a tough time running their offense.”
It was also a day that saw the girls battle on the court, said their coach.
“The highlight of the tournament was winning the Silver Championship match 15-13 in set three after being down 10-13,” she explained. “I called a time out and had the girls re-focus, then we went on a 5-0 run to win that set 15-13. I am so proud of these girls; this weekend was definitely a team success.”
JUNIOR VARSITY
Escalon’s JV girls picked up two wins this week.
They topped Big Valley in action Oct. 4 and Riverbank on Oct. 7.
“We didn’t know what to expect so we expected to play a high caliber match,” coach Krystal Rodriguez said of facing Big Valley.
Escalon took set one by a 25-16 final and then cruised to a 25-3 win in set two.
“The scores speak for themselves,” Rodriguez noted. “First set we played like we didn’t know what to expect so in that set we made our errors. Set two we figured it out and played the game at our speed.”
Kendra Gwartney had seven aces, while Makenzie Mendes had one kill. Grace Spurgeon had four digs and libero Macie Vickers had eight digs.
“Riverbank at home was another slower paced match but we knew that coming into the game,” Rodriguez said. “Scores could have been better with less unfocused errors.”
Still, the JV squad got the win, 25-13, 25-9.
Karissa McNeil had 13 assists, Sophia Martin had seven kills and Claire Barkus had a solo block. Natalie Titsworth did a solid job passing.
“She is one of my most consistent players on the team,” said the coach. “I call players like her utility players, she can literally play just about anywhere we need her to.”
Lisa Murga had a solid serving game in the set two victory to close out the visiting Lady Bruins.
FRESHMEN
Like their older counterparts, the youngest Lady Cougars defeated Big Valley on Oct. 4 and then came back with a league win on Oct. 7, defeating Riverbank in three sets.
At the Orestimba Tournament on Oct. 2, the freshmen played Modesto High, Central Valley, Riverbank, and host school Orestimba. They ran the table against all those squads as they took first place in the tournament.
