On Oct. 24, the girls varsity volleyball team (23-10 overall, 11-3 Peninsula Bay League) won 3-0 against San Mateo (8-16 overall, 2-12 PBL). The Dons were in control the whole game, resulting in an easy 25-11, 25-12, 25-18 victory in three sets over the Bearcats. The Dons won critical rallies and utilized their strengths — kills and blocks — to power through their opponents.
Many of the Dons’ points came from senior captain and outside hitter Lydia Manu, senior middle and outside hitter Siulolovao (Lolo) Folau, senior middle hitter Madison Campbell, and junior right side Sabine Milton.
One rally in the first set was hit back and forth six times and was ended by a spike by Manu. Then the Dons went on an 11-2 run en route to winning the set 25-11.
Ahead one set to none, the Dons did not let up. Campbell made a highlight save in the second set, who dove down low to set up a spike for Milton. The Dons won that set and had a chance to put the game away with the third set.
In the final set, the Dons came from a 13-10 deficit to take a 24-18 lead. On match point, senior Ally Thaw hit a one-handed backwards shot that forced an error by San Mateo to end the game.
Individually, the Dons’ offense was mostly Manu, Milton, and Folau who combined to score 14 of the Dons’ first 25 points. In the second set, they again scored 14.
The Dons leaned less on Manu, Milton and Folau during the final set and instead were supported by sophomore outside hitter Skylar Rubinstein, freshman setter and right side Anau Tongamoa and sophomore defensive specialist and setter Gabriella Oaks.
The team is working hard to end the 2019-20 season on a strong note, as they did last year when they finished second with a 29-7 overall record and 12-2 record in the PBL. The Dons picked up right where they left off despite the changes the new season brought.
This season the team has picked up first year head coach Annette Gennaro-Trimble and five new players, including Tongamoa and Rubinstein.
Their success this season is partly due to the group’s good chemistry. More than half of the players have been on the team since last year, including Manu and junior middle hitter Ella Sears.
“Our strength is we have a lot of seniors [and] they have experience going far in CCS,” Gennaro-Trimble said.
The team is built around their strong defense. They play clean and unselfish cuts down their errors.
“We have a very good back row, and a very good front row, so when those guys are in sync, things become really easy for us,” Gennaro-Trimble said.
The Dons’ defense is set by Campbell and Folau, who lead the team with 24 total blocks each. Their blocking ability is backed up by their aptness at digging.
Thaw accounts for 27 percent of the team’s digs with 142. She is supported by senior defensive specialists Dylan Scherer and Manu, who have 64 and 65 digs, respectively.
Manu leads the team with 85 kills and sets the pace for the rest of the team to follow. The Dons get over 11 kills per set, which are set up by their ability to assist. Tongamoa leads the team with seven assists per set and 179 total assists.
“I think it’s hard to pick just one player to represent the team, but if I had to I would say Lydia Manu,” Oaks said. “She plays amazing and is one of the most positive players on the team and always has a smile on her face.”
The team stays consistent through keeping their plays simple and sticking with what has worked for them in the past. However, they’re still not afraid to try out new things as they have the talent and athleticism to do so.
“We will try new plays occasionally, but our team likes to keep things simple and can dominate with our athleticism,” Oaks said.
The Dons finished the season with a 3-0 win against Hillsdale (18-11 overall, 8-6 PBL) on Oct. 29 placing them as the second team in the PBL.
They started their CCS journey on Nov. 5.
