Sobrato slips past Gilroy in boys volleyball opener
Gilroy – Sobrato took its lumps last year in the Tri-County Athletic League.
The Bulldogs start anew in the Blossom Valley Athletic League but not without a few “blasts from the past.”
The first three Sobrato matches were scheduled against former TCAL foes Gilroy, Alisal and Palma. With an opening win Tuesday against the Mustangs, 25-23, 25-18, 22-25, 23-25, 15-13, the Bulldogs were off and running.
“It was good for us,” Sobrato co-coach Kevin Miller said of the opener. “It’s hard to go to a new league and figure how we measure up. We were dying to be able to play TCAL teams to see how much better we are and how much we have to go.”
With the basketball and soccer players out for the first time this week, the Bulldogs had exactly one practice under their belt before the Gilroy opener.
“We have a lot of work we need to do,” Miller said. “We need better communication, get through our rotations and substitutions.”
Miller was happy with the opening win with one caveat.
“We should have closed them out in three (games),” Miller said.
That will come with time, both Miller and his wife and co-coach Rosemary Miller agree. This is still a very young team without a single senior listed on the 12-player roster. It’s an even mix of six juniors and six sophomores, with eight returning players and plenty of talent.
“They know the game this year,” Rosemary Miller said. “Last year was a learning experience. They got promoted now.”
The Millers are looking to sophomore Jared Mammen for leadership. The 6-2 outside hitter, who had 22 kills against Gilroy, possesses excellent skills, honed from playing club with Bay to Bay. He tried out for High Performance, an Olympic-caliber junior team, and is awaiting word if he is selected.
“The boys look up to him, how he plays,” Rosemary Miller said. “One of our goals with him is getting him into a leadership role, which he has shied away from because of his youth.”
Other experienced players include Adam Morales, Shawn Tharayil, Bhupinder Ishpuniani, Sims Jose, Robert Bown and Sachin Nediyanchath.
The Millers, who coached for six years at Overfelt before coming to Sobrato, greeted 26 candidates this year, up from last year where their frosh-soph players had to play varsity. Now they are able to field a junior varsity team.
“We’ll be competitive, that’s for sure,” Rosemary Miller said. “We went through a growing process last year (when they won two matches) and it was good experience for them.”
