Last Thursday evening 9/22, the Dons hosted the Cougars for their first league game at home. “Dons Showed Up! The gym was packed with a record number of Acalanes fans, all dressed in black with visiting Campo students in white. The roar of the crowd chanting “LET’S GO DONS” could be heard all the way to Cougar Country in Moraga! Thank you fans!
The first set was tight from the start, with the Dons battling hard for every point. Middle, Katelyn Olin, and oppo, Apple Walton led in kills, followed closely by Ryann Jones, Hanna Hageboeck, & Maya Paul. Georgia Winkles and Jade Profilio defended the Dons with deep digs; with Sofie Foster & Olin blocking the Cougs at the net. Profilio added to the Dons’ lead with an impressive run on serve. Unfortunately, the Cougars fought back and narrowly won the first set, 25 -23.
Highlights from the second set included multiple kills by pin hitters Jones, Walton, & Hageboeck, more great ups by Winkles & Wang, and lofty sets by Mara Korzeniowska & Emme Seelenbacher. Despite these and more efforts across the court from the Dons, and our incredibly fired up Dons’ fan base, we just couldn’t catch the Cougs, who defeated Acalanes 25 – 16.
The Dons started off set 3 fighting for a comeback: acrobatic dives & digs on defense by Mika Bocobo, Wang, & Profilio, kills by Jones, Hageboeck, & Olin, blocks at the net by Walton & Jones, and Korzeniowska with a run on serve, including an ace. Unfortunately, the Cougars outdid the Dons again in the third set with a score of 25 – 16.
Mark your calendars! Please Come TO Campo on Tuesday, October 11th to cheer us on to victory.
Up next:
Don’s Volleyball
Tuesday, September 27th- Dons Travel to Northgate
Thursday, September 29th- Home vs Las Lomas
Frosh@ 4
JV@ 5
Varsity @6:30
Acalanes JV wins the Battle against Campolindo
Wow, what a game. There’s just something different in the air and in the gym when these two schools faceoff against each other. The intensity gets ratcheted up big time. It’s fun for the players, coaches and fans alike. This game was no different. Campo got off to a great start in the first set, racing out to an insurmountable deficit. Our girls just couldn’t get it together and lost 25-11.
The Dons needed to step-up their game big-time if they wanted to make a game of it. Well, they sure did that. With a great kill by Sophia Terry, it started to change the direction of the match. Christina Hageboeck had multiple serving aces which increased the Dons lead in the second set. In the point of the match, Piper Coy raced way outside the court to save the ball which turned into a point for our side and took the wind out of the Cougar’s sails a bit. You could see the tide turning. Stella Larkin continued her trademark awesome serves to keep the pressure on. Our JV girls team took set #2, 25-14 and forced a third set that would determine the winner.
Piper Coy had another great save off the basketball hoop to win another point. Addi Ames had a great stretch kill from a high set to give the Dons an early lead. Campo wouldn’t go away though. Every time Acalanes had a 2 or 3 point lead, Campo would roar back. It was a seesaw battle that would come down to the wire. Stella Larkin’s serves kept coming and gave the Dons hope that this epic battle would be a winner for our side. With the 3rdset going to 15, Acalanes was up 14-12, with a couple of chances to finish off the set and match. Campo again came back and took the lead 14-15! Our lady Dons didn’t wilt and finished the set with 3 straight points to win 17-15. Everyone is looking forward to the rematch in a couple of weeks.
Freshman Girls Volleyball Falls to Campo in Three Sets
Whether it be Thermopylae, Gettysburg or Waterloo, all great battles are packed with drama with the outcome hinging on critical decisions and a bit of luck. The 2022 Acalanes v Campolindo freshman girls volleyball matchup was no exception…
Set #1: Dons win 25-15
The Dons looked pumped during warmups but quickly fell behind 1-4 as Campo’s strongest server pressed our defense. Ellie Blanchard broke Campo’s momentum with a strong kill for the Dons’ second point but Campo hung tough and widened the lead to 3-7. Maggie Krackeler’s kill provided the Dons’ fourth point and began to shift the momentum. Maya Stafford entered the game with the Dons down 6-8 and rattled off five straight service points, including 2 aces. Veronica Flint put the Dons up 9-8 and things were looking up.
Both teams played tough with Grace Hayes serving a wicked ace for point 13 and Brooke Rardin provided strong play from the right side. Campo began to rally later in the set, narrowing the Dons’ lead to 15-13 until Ellie provided a monster strike that put the Dons up 16-13, followed shortly by Sela Sarbiewski’s and Maggie’s big kills for points 18 and 19. With Dons up 20-15 the game seemed to be in hand and Maya made sure of that with six straight serves to close out the match, including 4 aces in a row.
Set #2: Dons lose 18-25
It was immediate fireworks in this one as Grace had an incredible dig to save the first point and Sydney Graves had a slick setter-dump for the Dons’ second point. Juliana Harhay had a nice block on the net as the closely matched teams found themselves tied 6-6 and 7-7. Sela’s diving save led to a 10-7 Dons lead and point 11 was dramatic as Maya’s save led to impressive Ellie kill. Reese Westphal had two service points and things were looking good as Grace notched four straight service points along with a great save that managed to clear the net and turn into a kill as the crowd went crazy with the Dons up 13-9. I’d like to say the momentum continued and all was well in ‘Dons-Land’ but Campo battled back, tying the score at 16-16 and then going up 16-20. The Dons never managed to regain their form and dropped the set 18-25.
Set #3
The Dons are no strangers to three set battles and showed their composure as Sydney served an ace for the first point of the set. Sela’s kill put the Dons up 3-2 and Maggie’s strike tied the score 4-4. Unfortunately the Dons had a tough time stringing many points together and found themselves down 5-9 when an epic point ensued that had the crowd on the edge of their seats, or weird folding mini-chairs in your correspondent’s case. The Dons captured the point and seemed poised to claw back from their 6-9 deficit but it wasn’t meant to be as they only scored one additional point and dropped the set 7-15.
The Greeks, Southerners and French didn’t get a second chance in their epic battles but the Dons will see Campo again later this season and have a chance to even the score!
