On Tuesday, Sept. 3, Archie Williams girls varsity volleyball fought against the Marin Academy Wildcats in their first home game of the season. The Falcons started strong, dominating the court for the majority of the first set, but unfortunately, they lost their momentum, and the game ended with the Wildcats on top 3-0.
Archie Williams and Marin Academy were tied within the first 10 minutes. The first set was competitive, with intense back-to-back scoring. The energy in the stands was high as the Archie Williams students cheered for their team and sang the Falcon chant.
As the game continued, Archie Williams sophomore libero Danielle Christian made a series of saves that brought the team up, and the Falcons were hopeful they might win the first set. Despite the Falcons’ hard work, Marin Academy made a strong last-minute comeback and won the first set 25-21.
“I thought my teammates and I all did a really good job staying connected. We had some challenges, but we worked our way through it, we stayed strong, and we had lots of fun,” Danielle said.
After losing the first set, the Falcons’ energy suffered. The second set began with the Wildcats immediately scoring back-to-back points, but the Falcons stayed in the game and made some kills of their own. Unfortunately, they couldn’t take back the lead and lost the second set 25-18.
In the third set, Marin Academy again scored two points right off the bat, but the Falcons made a strong comeback. Nevertheless, the Wildcats were persistent and fought hard for their win, and the set ended with a score of 25-19.
Despite this loss, the Falcons look forward to a bright season. With a strong roster of both new and returning players, head coach Lisa Hudson is confident that if they put in the work, the Falcons will fly high this season.
“I think we’re just going to keep working on our fundamentals, get our passing and our serving down, and then we should be able to play our game,” Hudson said.
With many new players on the team, senior team captain Rainey Preston hopes to encourage a welcoming community and ease everyone into the high-pressure environment.
“It’s important for the freshmen and the sophomores that are new on the team who have never played in front of a crowd and have never been in a really competitive game to feel comfortable and feel welcomed,” Rainey said.
As the Falcons look ahead to the season, they hope to improve their playing and start winning games. The Falcons will compete at Cardinal Newman High School Thursday, Sept. 5, and their next home game will take place Friday, Sept. 6 against Acalanes High School.
