Devils defeated by Dogs in women’s volleyball

By Claire Alongi,
BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–

Though the Davis High women’s volleyball team put up a vicious fight, the Blue Devils fell in their match against Vacaville High School 3-1 on Thursday, Sept. 1.

Initially, things looked promising for the Devils, with senior Addison Lyons coming out within seconds to slam a kill on the Bulldogs and snatch the first point of the match for DHS. But as the first game continued, the home team couldn’t hold onto the lead and saw Vacaville take over with a 25-15 win.

But the Devils weren’t going to make it easy for the Bulldogs. The second game saw seniors Sam Moore and Karlie Kijanka seriously stepping up their play and helping DHS squeeze out on top with a close 25-23 victory.

“Today I think our team did a really good job of coming back after the loss in the first game and giving Vacaville a competitive next three [games],” Moore said, citing support from teammates on the court and on the bench as motivation to play harder.

Kijanka was motivated by her team, as well as by the fact that in her four years playing volleyball she has never won against the Bulldogs.

“I felt like tonight’s game I really came out swinging and the goal was to play scrappy and get every ball up, and I felt like I really executed on that,” Kijanka said.

But despite Kijanka’s seemingly endless combinations of kills, and Moore diving again and again to save the ball, the Devils weren’t able to hang on after their second game win.

The third game saw Vacaville on top with 25-22, and again in the fourth game with 25-16.

Despite the overall loss, coach Julie Crawford was not discouraged, even after noting that the team did suffer from some “unforced errors and mental mistakes.”

“If it was just three quick games, easy in, easy out, we’re not getting any better if we beat a team really quickly or lose to a team really quickly,” Crawford said. “The more we’re learning to adapt, the better I think we’re going to get and the more prepared for leagues we’re going to be.”

The team will play next in their Fall Classic on Saturday, Sept. 10.