Though the Cougars looked the better team early, the Mustangs
successfully defended home court, sweeping the match 21-17, 25-21,
25-15.
GHS junior Gabby Flores sensed a different vibe inside Bob Hagen Memorial Gym. Judging by the two teams on the court it was easy to figure out why.
The visiting Christopher High Cougars made the short drive up Monterey Rd. to Gilroy High for a crosstown matchup in nonleague volleyball action Thursday night.
Though the Cougars looked the better team early, the Mustangs successfully defended home court, sweeping the match 21-17, 25-21, 25-15.
“We just needed to win this one because we were home,” said Flores, who had five aces and five kills for the Mustangs. “It was definitely the energy in the gym. There was a lot of tension between the two teams.”
The Cougars, who came into the match one night removed from going the distance against St. Francis C.C.C in a five-set loss, grabbed the lead 13-11 midway into the first set Thursday. However, the Mustangs rattled off a 14-4 run capped by a Megan Wheat kill to steal the set.
“Playing back to back is kind of tough sometimes, but they played a lot better tonight,” CHS head coach Sam Navarez said. “This is a good loss. They did well. They are going to become a good team.”
The Mustangs (3-1) have now won three straight matches after dropping their first go-around with Soquel.
“That felt good tonight,” Corioso said. “They clicked tonight. We played really strong together. I told them ‘work point for point and let’s get the lead. Once we get the lead lets keep going.’ That’s what they did. They looked really good.”
The second set proved to be the closest of the three as the two teams were virtually deadlocked lat in the set.
Cougars’ middle blocker Merrett Brown stopped a Mustangs’ mini 4-1 run with a kill, which was followed by another authoritative point from Aly Olvera to bring CHS within three at 23-20. But the Cougars couldn’t close the gap in time, falling behind 2-0 in the match.
“We were pretty confident in ourselves,” CHS freshman libero Michele Toves said. “I think our serve-receive wasn’t as good as it usually is but other than that we played hard.”
The Mustangs built a commanding 13-5 advantage in the third set but a cagey Cougars crew embarked on a 8-4 run to slice the deficit to four at 17-13. Not to be outdone, the Mustangs returned the favor and concluded the contest with a 12-2 burst.
Randi Rodgers paced the Mustangs with six kills while Megan Wheat, Demornay Granado and Randi Groppe put down five kills each.
Claudia Ferreira recorded a team-high six kills for the Cougars, Olvera posted five kills and Toves came away with 11 digs.
