Pothong tallies 18 kills in Mustangs’ four-game loss to Palma in
home finale
GILROY – Eight points separated the Mustang spikers and the Chieftains through the first three games of Friday’s thrilling home finale at Gilroy High School.
The Mustangs won the opening game by a slim 25-22 margin and Palma rallied for the next two games, 25-23 and 25-22, to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
“We played three great games and the last game we kind of fell apart,” said head coach Craig Martin, whose squad failed to force a fifth rally game by losing the fourth, 25-17. “It was a little disappointing for our seniors to go out that way. I felt bad for them.”
Gilroy’s five seniors – Kyle Loving, Jay Ahumada, Nick Mason, Brandt Chacon, and Angkoon Pothong – wanted more than anything to close out their careers on a winning note. But despite their all-out efforts, the Mustangs fell in four on ‘Senior Night’.
“They played their hearts out,” Martin said.
Pothong, a foreign exchange student-athlete from Thailand, led the Mustang attack with 18 kills on 30 attempts, while Loving followed with 10 kills on 22 attempts.
Ahumada, the Mustang setter, distributed the ball around like he has done all season long, tallying a team-high 39 assists. Mason led Gilroy in blocks with nine, seven resulting in points.
In addition, sophomore Dominic Jackson added six kills on 10 attempts.
“I give the whole team credit,” said Martin, whose Mustangs turned a 1-6 start in league into a respectable 5-8 mark (10-20 overall). “We had a good second half. We played with a lot of pride and emotion, and that builds character.”
Although six seniors will not return next season, the Mustang spikers have seven talented underclassmen set to be back – including sophomores Ryan Dickerson, Ryan Chisolm, Vincent DeLorenzo and Jackson, as well as juniors Adam Moon, Patrick Largo and Calvin Kretz.
“We were just happy with the development of the team,” Martin said. “Coming in with one varsity returner, it took the whole season to get to the point where we should have been.”
