The volleyball team finished 11-1 in district which tied them for first place. The tie breaker match, which would decide who would receive the first-round bye in playoffs, was played against Calallen at a neutral site (Gregory-Portland).

“We knew it was going to be tough,” junior setter Rachel Schuelka said. “But we were confident we would come out on top.”

Through tough defense and hard hitting offense the Lady Hornets defeated the Wildcats (25-16, 17-25, 28-26, 25-23) for the second time this season to take the first place seat in playoffs. The Hornets came out tough in the first game and got the job done, winning 25-16. The second game proved to be more difficult, but the ladies held on and came back to win the third and fourth games 28-26, 25-23.

“I was so happy we won,” senior defensive specialist Kristin Sheeran said. “It’s the second season in a row we’ve come back to beat them twice.”

After winning against Calallen the ladies had a first round bye, and started working towards their next game which would be played against the Pleasanton Eagles.

“Everyone came out hard-hitting,” senior setter Ashley Todd said. “We were going to make sure we would win, and progress further into playoffs than we did last season.”

After being named Area Champs, the Hornets moved on to Regionals, where they played Mission Veterans Memorial. The first game tested the Hornets determination. They came back from being down 23-18 to win 25-23. Led by junior Chelsea Greer (who had 10 service points in a row), the Lady Hornets then took control of the next two games to close out the match (25-13, 25-12).

“Everyone really stepped up their game and got the job done,” sophomore Emily Watson said.

In the semi-finals, the Hornets came up against Dripping Spring, who they had met earlier in the season. Game one proved difficult for the Hornets (losing 16-25), but they came back to start the second game with nine consecutive points. After a tough third game (lost 25-27), the Lady Hornets came back from being down 10-9 to win (25-22), to push the match into a highly intense fifth game. The Lady Hornets played well, but ended up just short in the last game.(10-15)

“We really came together and played our hearts out. We all wanted it so bad,” senior middle blocker Jaimie Arnold said. “[The game] just didn’t turn out the way we wanted it to, but we had a great season.”

The Lady Hornets had many accomplishments and were named District Co-Champs, Area Finalists, and Regional Semi-finalists.

“Out of my entire volleyball career I have never played with a more unified team,” Sheeran said. “I hope future teams have the heart that took us so far.”