Gilroy spikers sweep Oak Grove in three to advance to
quarterfinals
GILROY – A tough non-league tournament schedule against bigger ‘A’ schools got the Lady Mustang spikers into the CCS Playoffs as the No. 7 seed for the first time in 12 years. It also prepared them for the firepower of No. 10 Oak Grove – which did not win a game in Gilroy’s 25-22, 25-13, 26-24 home victory.
“They played so very, very well. I’m so proud of them,” head coach Sam Navarez said. “We had to win in three because that’s a great team.”
The three-game sweep puts the Lady Mustangs (22-10) into the CCS Quarterfinals – where they will take on No. 2 Piedmont Hills (17-12) on Saturday at 1 p.m. inside the Leland High School gymnasium.
“We came in just knowing what we had to do. We stuck together as a team and that’s what made it happen,” said Raquel Lucente, who finished with six digs. “The intensity was through the roof.”
The Lady Mustang spikers rode the momentum from the opening serve and never let down – even as Oak Grove threatened to force a fourth game after losing the first two games.
“When they’re down and you’re up, you have to bring them down more,” said Lucente, who served for match point in game-three. “It’s been 12 years since we’ve been to CCS so that pumped us up to be that team.”
Senior hitter Lourella Palao led the Lady Mustang attack with a team-high 14 kills to go along with her seven digs on defense and three aces at the line. Gilroy used a balanced offense with middle Amanda Link, senior hitter Yanina Gonzalez and setter Amy Thomas all tallying three kills. Sophomore Catherine Hussey led the squad in set-ups with 17, while teammate Erica Law recorded seven digs.
“(Defense) has been our strong suit,” Navarez said. “We always have a tough defense. Now we’re getting the offense clicking so we have some balance.”
Following back-to-back wins, the Lady Mustangs were poised to seal the match in the third game. Oak Grove was not about to walk off the court without a fight to the end, though. Gilroy jumped out to an early 4-0 lead behind the serves of Thomas, but the Lady Eagles battled back – eventually evening the score at 11-11. After Palao served for five straight points to give her squad a cushion, Oak Grove kept on coming – tying the game back up at 18-18.
The Lady Eagles briefly took a one-point lead before Gilroy fired back with two more points. The teams were tied yet again at 23-23 and at 24-24, but the Lady Mustangs scored the final two points to seal the CCS match win. After a Gonzalez kill for the first point, Lucente served up the winner as Oak Grove’s spike attempt went into the net.
“I was saying it had to be in three. It’s a different mentality if you go into that fourth game after losing and then have to go into a fifth,” Navarez said. “It was one of those momentum changers. If we had to play a fourth game, it would have been a tough way to do it. That’s why I’m so proud.”
