By Marion Wood
Staff Writer
It seems that the Polytechnic girls’ volleyball team brought the boisterous support of their fans onto the court on Friday, beating the Tigers in three hard-fought sets with scores of 25-21, 28-26, and 30-28. The Panthers were a definitive step up from Arroyo High School, the team that the Tigers had played and defeated a week before.
“This was our second game of the season, but it was actually against a competitive team, so I consider it more as our first game”, senior captain Sophia Hathaway said, “It was just a starting point for what we need to focus on.”
The Tigers started off the first game a little shakily, although the score was even with Poly. An SP timeout was called early in the game, at 3-3, in an attempt to increase the energy on the court. Though the players came back with more energy, the score remained tied for the majority of the game, up until the scoreboard read 17-17. The Panthers then ran away with a seven-point streak to reach the game point, 24-17. The Tigers pushed a last attempt for a win, but it was not enough to upset the Panthers’ substantial lead. In the end, Poly defeated SPHS with a final score of 25-21.
The second and third games were similar, although with intense closures that lasted beyond the usual 25 points. The games were mostly tied and both teams had small leads throughout. However, the Tigers had difficulty in the endgame, losing to Poly by virtue of small mistakes. Consistency was a common issue; SP head coach Ben Diaz counted 32 unforced errors throughout out the match. The Tigers were weaker on serve receive and defense, which the Panthers used to their advantage. This was counterbalanced by the Tiger offense, with strong performances from setter Molly Feldmeth and outside hitter Maddie Saito. Poly also had a powerful lineup at the net, with help from outside hitters Alex Clark and Deedee Logan. In the end, the Panthers were a worthy opponent, but the Tigers acknowledged that they didn’t play to their potential.
“It was only our second game of the season, so it wasn’t our best”, senior Shanovi Bass said, “We have a lot of room to improve- we’ll fix our mistakes.”
The Tigers hope to do so in their upcoming game against Canyon High School on September 18 at 5:30 in Santa Clarita.