The women’s volleyball team closed out its season at Kellogg Arena this past weekend. The Broncos’ first match up was against the Warriors from Stanislaus State.
The first set was a back-to-back rally between both teams, but the Warriors came out with the win, 31-29. With a tough battle in the first set, the Broncos fought their way in the second set. The Warriors took the second set with a score of 25-22.
The Broncos rallied, but fell short in the third set as well. The Warriors ended up sweeping the Broncos 3-0, with the ending set score of 25-22 in the last set.
Freshman outside hitter Jazminn Parrish led the Broncos with 16 kills and one block for the night. Freshman opposite-side hitter Daisy Duke ended the night with seven kills and three blocks. Sophomore setter Kira Zimmerman had another successful night with 32 assists for the Broncos.
With one match left for the Broncos’ season, they knew they needed to end their season on a high note. The Broncos faced the Wildcats from Chico State as their last competitor of the season.
The Wildcats took control of the match early on and beat the Broncos in the first two sets (25-19, 28-26). With the match on the line, the Broncos fought their way back and gained momentum, taking the third set with an ending score of 25-19.
The Broncos became unstoppable and took the fourth set at 25-19. The Broncos dominated the last set, 15-11, and defeated the Wildcats.
Junior middle blocker Ally Wilder had an outstanding night with 21 kills and one block for the last match of the Broncos’ season. Parrish trailed behind her with 14 kills and had two aces. Zimmerman ended another successful night with 46 assists.
The Broncos ended their season with a victory and the two seniors, Karrah Griffiths and Kaitlin Powell, were more than happy with their time playing for the Broncos.
“I’ve been injured and it’s been tough to come back,” Griffiths said. “But, really having my team to support me really made it all worth it.” Griffiths also said that “school comes first,” but being a part of the team built her character and made her ready for the business world.
Nouk Keovyphone | The Poly Post
Powell has played volleyball for 10 years and says this was her favorite team she’s ever been on. “It was such an amazing season,” Powell said. “I know my entire team had my back and the coaching staff was there for me the whole time. It was the best season I could have asked for with who I got to work with. I am so lucky.”
Head coach Traci Dahl’s first season coaching for the Broncos has been remarkable for her. Reflecting back on the last match of the season, she said “there was a lot of emotions.”
“It can either make you or break you when it comes to focus … tonight, it made us but late in the game,” Dahl said. “It kind of started slow being down 0-2, but taking that third set really made us gain some momentum. I saw a drive in the team that they didn’t want it to end.”
The team has grown in many ways throughout the season with so many young players. “We had to fill some puzzle pieces,” Dahl said. “I was really happy with how the team ended. We ended up playing some of the best volleyball we’ve played all year, and that’s all you can ask for. Throughout that process, we had to go through the growing pains and took some hard hits and some losses.”
Dahl said the biggest takeaway from this season was how important team chemistry was. The team maintained that chemistry throughout its last match of the season and ended with a blissful victory.
