By Mike Finnerty
mike.finnerty@surewestsports.com
Vista Del Lago High School opened its doors back in 2007, and in just five years the school is already making its mark in girl’s volleyball.
Last year, the Vista Del Lago Eagles beat Union Mine in four sets to win the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III championship, and on Thursday at U.C. Davis the Eagles made it back-to-back titles with a 3-1 (25-20, 22-25, 25-19, 25-13) win over the Christian Brothers Falcons.
“It’s a good opponent we had tonight, Christian Brothers, and it’s a good victory for our program,” said Vista Del Lago head coach Patrick Sanders. “The girls really wanted it. They played some fantastic defense, which was the key tonight. We had to really rely on that to get us out of some situations, and that carried us throughout the match.”
Despite dropping the second set, the Eagles maintained control of the match with defense and the scoring contributions of junior Caroline Sipiora and Kelsey Sampson.
Vista Del Lago dominated the fourth and deciding set that would finish in a 25-13 victory.
“I think we played as a team,” said Sipiora. “We really came out with our adrenaline pumping. We had some nerves a little bit in that first game, but we worked through it and worked as a team.”
The Division III NorCal playoffs begin on Tuesday, and Sipiora sees the bigger picture as her youthful squad looks ahead.
“It’s so important to our team and our program, and just carrying that intensity into State playoffs and in to next year. It’s so important to us and we take it to heart, it’s so exciting.”