YOUR Acalanes Dons Volleyball team traveled to Sacramento in their return to the State Tournament to face off with the #4 seeded Christian Brothers Falcons. The Dons fought hard but ultimately fell in five sets, ending the season and wrapping up the Dons careers for Seniors Elsa Clever, Roxy Cummings, Rachel Go, Hayes Hollar and Cailey McVay.
First Set:
4-6: Great digs from Clever, and then Madi Risch crushes one from the pipe.
10s: Hollar stellar passing this time. Risch kills it again and the Dons tie it up.
11-10: McVay! McAce! Dons take the lead.
12-10: McVay Ace again!
14-10: McVay Ace again. Crazy. Timeout Falcons. Christian Brothers need to figure out how to deal with the wild and very effective cheering by the small contingent of Acalanes parents that made the trip!
15-10: McVay guess what? Another Ace!
18-13: McVay nice pass. Go nice set. Hollar nice kill. Those seniors have practiced that so many times, and they nail it one more time.
19-17: Big C.B. run. Timeout Dons.
22s: Hollar kill reties it after the Falcons snatched to lead.
25-22: Dons take the first set on the Kennedy Cornish kill as the Dons close with 4 straight behind some sharp Lane Webster serving.
Second Set:
2-4: Cummings kill and then a Risch pipe kill after another slow Dons start.
5-4: Risch Ace! Dons lead!
6-4: Risch Ace! Dons still lead!
10-6: Hollar deep kill just clips the back line.
12-8: Hollar is on fire…another kill keeping the Falcons in their nest.
13-10: Cornish smokes a kill.
15-10: Awesome Go set off a tough pass, and Clever rips it for a kill.
17-13: Cummings kill. Dons and Falcons trading points.
20-16: Kaylin Hiatt: Dirty Ace just…barely…rolls…over…the…net…and lands softly on the court, untouched. Timeout Falcons.
21-16: Timeout does not work: another Ace from Hiatt!
22-17: Wild point. Risch hammers one from the pipe to end the rally.
24-18: Webster to Go to Risch. Textbook for set point.
24-19…24-20…24-21…timeout Dons…24-22…
25! Dons hang on and win the second set 25-22. Phew!
Third Set:
1s: Perfect Go set to Clever. Ripped.
2-3: Hollar kill. Dons down early again.
7-5: Hollar Ace! Dons back in the lead.
9-11: Go dumps a winner over the net. Sneaky and stops a big Falcon attack.
10-11: And then Go Aces it!
14s: Cummings claws the Dons back to a tie with a kill.
15s: Cummings again.
16s: Cummings yet again. Is the third tie the charm?
16-18: It’s not…timeout Dons.
18-19: Risch Roof!
20-21: Risch kills the Webster set.
21-23: Risch kills the Go set.
21-25: Christian Brothers rallies back to take the 3d set.
Fourth Set:
3-8: Timeout Dons. Falcons have completely turned the momentum.
5-12: Risch kill. Dons are scrambling to get back in this one.
6-15: Annika Olson kills the Webster set, but the Dons are in big trouble.
11-19: Olson big kill.
14-20: Clever Roof! Dons fighting to close the gap.
18-23: Hollar somehow scores on a wild point. Falcons defense has really stepped up and it is hard for the Dons to find any gaps.
18-25: Dons drop the 4th to force the tiebreaker set. Let’s Go Dons!
Fifth Set:
2s: Tied up early on the Cummings line kill. Yes Rox.
4-6: Amazingly long rally. Back and forth. Multiple diving saves and digs. Cornish kills it to keep the Dons close.
4-11: But the Dons struggle mightily and the Falcons reel off 5 straight. Timeout Acalanes.
5-11: Erin Meade delivers a much needed kill.
8-14: Oh no. Match point. Timeout Dons.
9-14: Dons score.
10-14: Dons score.
11-14: Clever Roof! Dons score again. Not dead yet.
12-14: Cummings Roof! Dons score again. Still not dead yet.
13-14: Dons score. OMG! Risch on a roll serving. Can we get one more?
13-15: Oh! After a wild ping-pong rally at the net the ball finds the floor…on the Don’s side…and suddenly the match is over. Almost an amazing comeback.
And so YOUR Dons finally do wrap up another season at 17-14, with a 4th place League finish in the highly competitive DAL, a North Coast Semifinalist, and a CIF State Championship appearance for just the second time in Dons history. Thanks for your support! Go Dons!