Looking back at the season

Varsity girls’ volleyball ranked in the top 15 teams from Bay Area high schools this past season, and the team is currently seeded second in the league, a ranking they have not achieved since 2007.

This year is also the first year that the team has made the top 15 since 2007. They were ranked out of teams from several Bay Area high schools including those in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.

“[The season] has been really good so far. I think our team has bonded really well. We all love each other, and it shows on the court. We have a good team connection, and as a product, we’ve won a lot of games because we have a good bond,” captain Shannon Richardson (11) said.

This year, the team’s league win to loss ratio improved to 9-1, and their overall win to loss ratio is currently at 17-8. The team is currently prepared to make a deep run in CCS.

Last year, the team won their CCS Quarterfinals game against Castilleja but lost to Menlo in the semifinals. The team’s league record last year was 5-5, and their overall record was 14-12.

We have a completely different make up of a team this year, many of the same players, but players playing in different positions and it took us a long time to gel,” Head Coach Theresa Smith said. “I’m not sure if we peaked at the right time last year, whereas we are definitely peaking at the right time this season.”

Many of the volleyball players have high hopes for their run in CCS, and some are confident in their chances of making CCS finals this year.

“I think we have had the best position in years; we’re seeded number two in the league, and the other top two teams are on the other side of the bracket, so if we do make it all the way, we’ll meet them in the finals. I really think we can make CCS finals this year,” Rachel Cheng (10) said.

The girls automatically advanced past the first round to the CCS Quarterfinals because of their top three ranking.

“I think we need to take it one game at a time, but we have a really good chance of making it past the semifinals, which have seemed to block us in the past two years. We definitely have a good lineup, which is nice,” Shannon said.

The girls first played on Nov. 15 against Sacred Heart Prep in the quarterfinals at Harker and won 3-1.