Girls' volleyball loses in semi-finals after a strong season

Nicholas ZarchenPhoto EditorSamo girls’ volleyball’s quest for a CIF title ended Tuesday, Nov. 15 in their 18-25, 14-25, 16-25 loss to Pasadena Polytechnic High School.Coming out of a dominating quarterfinal win against Santa Ynez, the team was determined to win."Our confidence definitely stepped up a level after beating Santa Ynez. We became extremely pumped up and determined to keep moving on in playoffs," senior outside hitter and captain Sarah Krenik said.However, their promising season and hopes of a title dissolved during the game.In the beginning of the first set the girls came out strong, gaining a fierce lead against the Polytechnic team that has not lost a set in their CIF run, but the girls could not keep it up and they fell in the first."The first set we came out playing our game and we gained momentum, but it was cut short," Krenik said. "It was tough but we put it all out there."Polytechnic continued to dominate, and Samo went on to lose the second and third in an uncharacteristic fashion.However, the underclassman on the team agree that their mindsets have to shift off of the last game and onto next year.“We can’t stay stuck in our loss and we can’t beat ourselves up. We have to move on and learn from it. We have big shoes that need to be filled and it is going to be hard,” freshman setter Blossom Sato said. “But that’s what makes a team good. I have faith in these girls to work hard, put in the time and in the end we will know we tried our hardest.”This year the team is losing seven seniors and will have key spots to fill. The girls are losing captain Sarah Krenik, middle Abby Southam, libero Dana Ritchie, defensive specialist Samantha Moore, outside hitter Victoria Onofre, setter Kim Chyu, and defensive specialist Taylor Ehlers."We are going to remember the feeling of such a tough loss in the semifinals and use it to make us fight harder next year in not only CIF but throughout the post season and summer," junior outside hitter Jordan Levy said.Despite their loss, the returning girls are optimistic and eager for next season, which will bring a new chance for redemption.“We had a great run this year and there's no doubt that we played our hearts out. We put it all on the floor and we should be proud of ourselves,” Sato said. “I’m going to miss playing with all the seniors and I love these girls so much. And even though we lost, we are resilient — we will be back next year, more prepared than ever.”Moreover, the girls agree that this game just added more fuel into their engine."Ask anyone. They'd probably say it was a disappointing loss. No fire," junior opposite hitter Avalon Lennon said. "It's definitely hard to walk around school with a fake smile on my face to hide my frustration. One thing is for sure: we got a taste for winning, and now that we've lost it just gives us that extra push of hunger."nzarchen@thesamohi.com