The varsity volleyball girls wait for junior Katia Dahmani to serve during the fourth set.
“Come on, Katia!” students shouted as junior Katia Dahmani served for the game point.
The Cavs won the first two sets against Forest Lake Christian at home on Aug. 31 both by a score of 25-22. But they fell short in the third set, 19-25.
Although they dropped the third set, it wasn’t a devastating blow.
“All the games were really close, so it was tough to win every one,” senior captain Alexa Mathisen said.
“I would’ve been very surprised if we won in three against a very competitive team like that.”
After Dahmani served, the Falcons returned the ball to the Country Day side.
As it came back, Dahmani set up freshman Bri Davies. Davies then assisted Mathisen, who dropped the ball in between three Forest Lake players, giving SCDS the set, 27-25.
The crowd roared in response to the exciting victory in the season opener.
The win was a full-team effort, according to head coach Jason Kreps.
“Everyone played, and we had two different lines,” Kreps said.
“Even when some girls weren’t on the court, their presence was still felt from their cheering on the bench.”
Starters for the game were senior Isabelle Leavy; juniors Yasmin Gupta, Annya Dahmani, and Katia Dahmani; sophomore Lia Kaufman; and freshmen Davies and Monet Cook.
Mathisen didn’t start because of missing practice the previous day.
On Aug. 29 the team lost in the annual Foundation Game to Bradshaw Christian.
“This was a big improvement (from the Foundation Game),” Kreps said.
“We really grew a lot in three days. Good chemistry takes a while to build, and this was a big stepping stone in the right direction.”
Chemistry wasn’t the only area in which the team improved in only a few days.
“Our defense (passing) and getting short balls in the middle of the court was much better against Forest Lake,” junior Yasmin Gupta said. “Overall we were talking more and more energetic.”
The Cavs take on Cornerstone Christian in another home game on Thursday, Sept. 8, at 6 p.m.
—By Adam Dean
