Volleyball clears first round

It’s been a little while, but for the first time in several years, Coach Megan Guffey announced earlier this week that Mammoth High School’s Volleyball squad made it past the first round of playoff competition. The advance comes after a Nov. 9 win over Nu View Bridge Academy in Nuevo, Calif., not far from Moreno Valley. According to MaxPreps, which tracks wins and losses for school sports teams, Mammoth’s girls’ team was ranked higher than Nu View, the Warrior League’s second-place team, in both the division and state.

The Lady Huskies won in 4 games 25-18, 25-12, 23-25 and 26-24.

“I was a little nervous in the third game when we lost,” Coach Guffey commented. “It seemed difficult to get the girls picked back up again. I am pleased that they were able to play one point at a time to finish in the fourth game rather than going a fifth game.”

Guffey said she thinks what seemed to help the Huskies pull out the win was playing point by point and playing as if it was always game point.

“I was moved to tears in our post game meeting when I congratulated them on continuing on to the second round,” an emotional Guffey commented. “We all worked really hard to get to this point. It is a privilege and an honor to take this team to playoffs.”

For Mammoth, Kristen Sigmen put in 4 aces, 2 digs, 4 kills and a block; Jessie Harris threw down a pair of aces, 4 digs, 16 kills and a half-dozen blocks; Sam Knadler smashed 2 aces, 7 digs and 1 kill; Jenny Clark dug in for 9 digs; Arely Bramona-Fierro pumped in 2 aces, 17 digs, 1 kill and 2 assists; Aly Vanko chalked up 1 ace, 3 digs, 3 kills and a whopping 24 assists; Syd Knadler hung in tough for 3 digs, 5 kills and 3 blocks; Kate Desalvo picked up 1 ace, as well as 10 digs, 10 kills and 1 block; and Hannah Hein got in 5 digs, 2 kills and 2 assists.

The team members celebrated their win and enjoyed a layover day by making a side trip to Knott’s Berry Farm.

The win more than made up for a five-game loss in the Huskies’ final regular season match on Nov. 4 against Lone Pine. Despite the loss, Coach Guffey was enthused by the team’s performance. “It was an intense match that really could have gone either way. Both teams played fabulous. It was an exciting match to watch,” she said

Guffey’s girls next headed to Bermuda Dunes, Calif., near Palm Desert, on Thursday, Nov. 11 to take on Desert Christian Academy in the next round. Watch for more results as they become available on www.thesheetnews.com. –Sheet Staff