Junior varsity girls volleyball team bests Pinewood in two sets

Junior+varsity+girls+volleyball+libero+Aline+Grinespan+%289%29+waits+for+the+ball+during+their+game+on+Thursday.+The+Eagles+defeated+Pinewood+in+two+sets%2C+starting+their+league+record+at+1-0.

Hima Thota

Junior varsity girls volleyball libero Aline Grinespan (9) waits for the ball during their game on Thursday. The Eagles defeated Pinewood in two sets, starting their league record at 1-0.

by Emma Milner, Hima Thota, Young Min, and Margaret Cartee

The junior varsity girls volleyball team defeated Pinewood School 25-21, 25-10 at a home game on Thursday, starting their league record at 1-0.

The girls began the match with the serve, but lost the point to Pinewood’s team, who went on a serving run until Harker called a timeout at 0-5. The Eagles then regained momentum in offense and serving, pressuring Pinewood to call a timeout at 9-10. Pinewood kept a lead at 10-15, but Harker challenged them in a sequence of long rallies. 

Harker finally caught up to Pinewood, bringing the score to 18-18 and taking the lead at 22-21. Alison Yang (10) served two aces to gamepoint at 24-21, thus forcing Pinewood to call a timeout. 

Assistant Coach Danielle Buis reflected on the match and hoped to continue refining the team’s gameplay.

“We’re right at the point where the fundamentals are really well-rounded, and we can move on to doing really strategic plays,” Buis said. “I think we’ve got a lot to work on, and the next time we see Pinewood, hopefully the score will be even better.”

In the second set, though Pinewood served first, the Eagles sided out quickly, gaining several points and stopping Pinewood from scoring any. After Pinewood called a timeout at 6-0, Harker continued to dominate the game, and libero Aline Grinspan (9) served six aces in a row, solidifying the team’s lead at 16-4. 

“I’m looking forward to just practicing with the team, getting better and improving our teamwork skills,” Aline said.

Although Harker lost the serve at 20-8, they quickly rebounded to win the game. 

The junior varsity girls volleyball team plays next at Woodside Priory at 4 p.m tomorrow.