Girls volleyball dives into CIF with a win

On Tuesday, Oct. 31, the Samo girls volleyball team kicked off their CIF season with a win against West Torrance, 3-1.As they dove into their first CIF game the girls felt that they were extremely prepared to play cohesively on the court, but still had anxiety about coming out victorious. As the first set began, the crowd was on the edge of their seats shouting supportive cheers. Annalise Wille (’20) was confident in her team’s ability.“Going into the game we all were ready to play well together. We have a great team of super skilled girls and can play great on the court,” Wille said.After a first set of hard work and cooperation, the team ended with a win of  25-16. The win encouraged the team to continue to play strong as they headed into the second set.“We have a skilled team and I knew that we could persevere and push ourselves to continue our streak and win the next set,” varsity player Dylan Leight (’20) said.As the team began their second set, the spectators were on their feet cheering them on. The girls had great hits that kept the audience roaring, and they had a great team dynamic as the set went on. However, they didn’t play at the same skill level as they previously did, and by the end of the second set Samo had lost to West Torrance, 16-25. Rallying for the third set, the girls knew they had to push themselves to win. Tired but ready to play strong, they headed onto the court with intense determination. They played well and regained their ability as a team, and were able to serve hard and win the third set, 25-15. As they made the final point, the audience erupted into supportive cheers. Heading into their fourth set and ready to end the game strong, the team walked onto the court determined and thirsty for a win. As the fourth set went on, the girls proved themselves once again, winning the set 25-17 and the game 3-1. “We played strongly together and individually, and I’m so glad we were able to win and move on to the next CIF game,” Channing Baker (’20) said. As the team celebrates their win they will continue to practice hard and prepare for their upcoming CIF game against Valley Christian.