The No. 5-seeded Live Oak High girls volleyball team had a flair
for the dramatic as they defeated the No. 4-seed Milpitas in five
games Saturday in the first round of the Central Coast Section
Division I playoffs at Leland High in San Jose.
The No. 5-seeded Live Oak High girls volleyball team had a flair for the dramatic as they defeated the No. 4-seed Milpitas in five games Saturday in the first round of the Central Coast Section Division I playoffs at Leland High in San Jose.
Things looked promising early on as the Acorns set down the Trojans 25-19 in the first two games. But the Acorn girls lost the next two games by scores of 13-25 and 27-29 before pulling off the victory in the fifth, and deciding, game by a 15-11 score.
“We knew it was going to be tough,” Live Oak head coach Laura Coleman said after the match. “We played them earlier in the season and won in five. We didn’t know if we could do it again.”
In the first game, the girls came out swinging. Both sides kept pace with each other, but the Acorns were able to pull ahead midway through and never looked back.
Toward the end of the match, Milpitas mounted a threat, but Live Oak was too far ahead and easily won.
Momentum began to shift in the second game. After taking a 3-0 lead, Live Oak found themselves down by five points before salvaging the game.
Live Oak was playing catch-up the entire way in Game 2 until the end when the entire team clicked.
Behind the serving of senior Justine Pingue and the strong play of junior Juliette Bowers, the Acorns overcame the deficit and won game two on an ace by Sophomore Kristen Russ.
The high level of play could not be kept up by Live Oak going into the third game, as they were dominated by Milpitas the entire way. The Acorns made mistake after mistake and were not able to correct them in time, and ultimately fell 13-25.
Going into the fourth game, Milpitas looked to be on the way to another blow-out to force a fifth game, but the Acorns still had life in them.
After being down by as much as five in the match, the girls corrected their mistakes and caught up to the Trojans and even passed them.
That’s when a desperate battle ensued.
Because a team must win by two in volleyball, it became a war of attrition. It would ultimately come down to one missed serve by Live Oak to cost them Game 4.
But the fire was lit, and the girls exploded in the fifth game.
The Acorns found their rhythm from earlier in the match and made quick work of the Trojans, winning 15-11.
“I don’t know what happened,” Coleman said about the dramatic swing the girls made during the match. “I’m still trying to figure them out.”
Pingue, who helped lead the drive in the second game, said that the team was tired and needed a little time to regain their focus.
“Everyone started to get winded,” Pingue said. “We’re not lazy. Just mentally, we needed to push ourselves.”
Also playing well for the Acorns was senior Whitney Phares, who received the coveted Barbie, handed out at the end of each match to the player Coach Coleman believes stood out in the game.
Phares’ defense earned her the prize. She started out slow, but picked things up as the game progressed to help the team ultimately earn the win over the Trojans.
Live Oak will now set their sights on No. 1-seeded Salinas on Thursday. The Tri-County Athletic League rival Cowboys have given the Acorns trouble over the course of the season, defeating them each time the teams met. The game will be played at 6 p.m. at Leland High.
