The men’s volleyball team is looking sharp after its hot start.

Cal (11-2, EBAL 6-0) started the season on a roll and is now in position for a high ranked NCS berth. 

Cal lost in the semifinals of the Northgate Tournament on April 4 to Foothill in 3 sets. 

In a thriller, Cal came back from a 2-0 deficit to beat local powerhouse San Ramon Valley 3-2 (23-25, 17-25, 25-12, 25-16 and 15-12) on March 26. 

Junior Adam Slattery had 11 kills and 2 blocks, seniors Jordan Snyder had 7 kills and an ace, and John Adkins had 41 assists and 2 kills.

“We were down on ourselves,” said senior Dan Whitaker. “But as a whole we improved in the last few games and enough to win.” 

The team opened the season by winning its first five games, including league victories over Amador Valley and Foothill. 

The team’s first lost was against St.Margaret at the College Park Tournament on March 14. Cal placed second at the tournament.  

In one of the most important games of the year, the Grizzlies beat Foothill in 5 sets on March 19. 

Foothill is one of strongest teams in league, said coach Courtney Whitaker, and the win on the road was huge for the team. Dan had 23 kills and 2 blocks, while John 36 assists.

“The Foothill game was the most exciting game all year,” said senior Eric Varela. “We didn’t quit.” 

The team easily took out Monte Vista on March 26, winning in four sets.

Much of the team’s success has come from their practices. 

The team is focusing more in practices to improve changes in their offense since they have lost a few key players from last year, and only have two starting returnees in seniors Brent Williams and Dan. 

Cal has been working at practices to run more of their offense from the outsides rather than always through the middle.

“We’re trying to get better instead of content,” said John.

With last season’s success, the team and coaches thought that egos could have disrupted the team.