Volleyball earns well deserved win against Culver

On Thursday, Sept. 29, Samo’s girls volleyball varsity team played Culver City high School. The game went to four sets and lasted for two full hours, the winning score being 21-25, 3-1 sets. After losing to Culver at their away game in the beginning of the season, the Samo team has been looking for redemption against their rivals. With the home advantage and the pink scrunchies for good luck, they did just that.“This game was really important because we wanted to prove we are better than them. We have a huge feud with them and it’s amazing that we won, especially after they beat us in CIF finals last year,” said Georgia Fischer (’21), who was a player in the infamous CIF game. Samo’s starters included Ella Dreibholz (’21), Georgia Fischer (’21), Daina Monroe (’21), Elizabeth Gross (’19), Dylan Leight (’20), and Annalise Wille (’20). During the first few points, Gross dominated with her killer dives and saves. She showed major commitment to the game, and was undoubtedly the star of the first set. After being tied for most of its duration, the first set ended with a close score of 23-25. During the second set, tensions began to build. The score was tied until both teams reached 12 points, when Samo began to pass Culver. Fischer made an epic block that resulted in a Culver setter using her foot to attempt to keep the ball in play, giving Samo the 24th point. However, Culver soon caught up, evening out the score. It was like a game of tag, each team getting a point right after the other. The set went over 25 to 28-26, giving Samo their second set victory in a row. “This was by far the most intense set. We played really hard though, it was exhilarating,” Monroe said. Things turned around for Culver during the third set, beating Samo 25-20. Nonetheless, Wille gave it her all, picking up slack for the whole team for the last few points. Due to the loss of the third set, Samo and Culver were required to play a fourth one. After being tied until nine, Samo had a burst of energy, pushing themselves until the end. The final set ended 21-25.“We played really well, I’m proud of the girls,” Coach Stanton Smith said. “We had a lot of good serves and we overall outplayed them. It was a fair game, we deserved the win.”