At five in the afternoon, fans filled the gym at Northwest Christian School, ready to support and watch their respective team play. The volleyball team at Northwest Christian is well known in the world of high school volleyball as they were last year’s state champions. The girls were nervous to take on these victors but excited all the same.

The game began with Horizon Honors taking the lead right away. One of the night’s MVPs was sophomore Emma Martin, number 9, who helped lead the team to victory with her constant kills and aces. Martin’s array of point-earning plays acted as a major confidence and energy boost to the other girls on the team. JV’s Coach Bill Ziegler stated, “When we don’t have energy, we aren’t having fun and we don’t play well, so I think our energy is the most important thing when it comes to winning our games.” The first set ended with a score of 25-16 in Horizon Honors’ favor.

The second set saw a tug-of-war for dominance. The score was tied multiple times, including at 18-18, 19-19, and 21-21. Despite the tougher vollies, the players, both on the court and the sideline, were able to maintain their support for each other and cheer for every point. Ziegler said, “We had a lot of fun out on the court and I think that was the deciding factor.” An impressive play was performed by junior Emily Rush, number 13, when she blocked a ball from Northwest Christian and was able to make a kill off an overpass directly afterwards. Rush revealed a few of the factors that helped them win the game: “[We had effective] communication and we just played really hard; we were aggressive.” Teammate junior Rachel Van Gorp agreed, “We really wanted to win.”

It was a close set, but the girls were able to pull through. The second set ended with a score of 25-21 completed with another ace from Martin and continuing this season’s winning streak of two wins and zero losses. JV’s next game will be at home on Monday, Sept. 8, against Santa Cruz Valley High School. Their season ends on Oct. 29.