Victories against Weston Ranch, Oakdale, East Union and Sonora were recorded over the past couple of weeks by the Escalon Lady Cougars; they also lost a match to Central Catholic.
Head coach Teresa Williamson noted that the girls did lose by a 3-1 final to Central, battling in a 25-20, 17-25, 13-25, 18-25 contest.
Valley Oak League play continued with a 3-0 sweep of Weston Ranch by Escalon, 25-18, 25-15, 25-9 and a three-game sweep of East Union by a 25-13, 25-11, 25-9 decision.
Against Oakdale, the varsity volleyball girls again got the straight sets victory, outscoring the Lady Mustangs 25-14, 25-15, 25-16.
Among the stats leaders for those contests were: Aces, Emily Vickers 9; Haylee Barajas 8; Rylie Lattig 6. Kills, Mandy Murphy 42; Emily Vickers 32; Bella Cormack 19; Elise Gonzales 13. Assists, Rylie Lattig 76; Haylee Barajas 20; Blocks, Bella Cormack 11; Mandy Murphy 7; Valeria Gonzalez 6; Elise Gonzalez 5. Digs, Emily Vickers 33; Koren Rodriguez 31; Grace Ferreira 28.
Closing out the season with a home match on May 19, Escalon hosted and defeated Sonora, winning in three by a 28-26; 25-21; 25-15 final.
Rylie Lattig had 24 assists and four aces while Mandy Murphy added 14 kills, Emily Vickers had nine and Bella Cormack had seven. In blocks, Cormack had four, Murphy added three. Koren Rodriguez had 13 digs for the team and Grace Ferreira added 10.
“This was a memorable season in many ways. Even though it was a short season, these girls showed a lot of grit and growth. With several of these girls playing multiple sports, it truly shows how resilient these girls are,” said Williamson. “I am losing three seniors and they will be missed. I have a lot of seasoned players returning this next season. I will be very solid in the front row with Mandy Murphy, Emily Vickers, Bella Cormack, and Rylie Lattig. Defense will be very tough, with Grace Ferreira, Emily Middelton, and Matty Bolen. I have very strong utility players, Haylee Barajas, Leah Wheeler, and Valeria Gonzalez. These girls played any position the team needed them to.”
Seniors honored previously for their contributions to the program were Koren Rodriguez, Mya Scott and Elise Gonzales.
“I look forward to the incoming juniors coming up,” added Williamson. “There is a lot of talent on the JV team and I have high expectations for them.”
