Cate Boys Volleyball Falls to Laguna in Season Opener

February 20, 2024

Mack Nieman spikes the ball, securing one of his six kills during the match. Image by Katie

Despite a 3-Set Sweep, Team Shows Grit and Positive Signs

The Cate boys varsity volleyball team fought against a tough team in our league for our season opener. Laguna Blanca swept Cate in 3 sets, but the team fought hard until the end and gained some much-needed match experience. With little practice time to iron out kinks, the team is still looking to find that comfortable lineup with players feeling confident in their roles on the court. The team did excel in mentally staying in the game despite the score and working together to figure out a way to get the ball back on their side. They started strong in set 1 with a couple of service aces, several blocks, and several kills, but the passing and defense stalled mid-game, and they just couldn’t get back in. The team had a few opportunities to take set 2, especially after clawing their way to 23-23, but ultimately couldn’t close it out despite a great run at the end. In set 3, the outsides clobbered the ball for nine kills and had a couple of decisive blocks to side out. Still, the team was unfortunately plagued with some consecutive missed serves, which made it difficult to gain any momentum to make a run at the score. Overall for the match, Ben Richmond ’24 led with ten kills, while Mack Nieman ’25 and Lucien Tann ’26 followed up with 6 and 4, respectively. Setter Zadin Stevens ’25 tossed up three service aces, while libero Lucas Huiner ’25 scooped up five digs.

While a loss is always challenging, many positives came out of this match and knowing what to work on. Our next match is at home against Foothill this Thursday at 5:00 pm, with the JV match at 4:00 pm.