Girls’ volleyball has regained the success they had earlier this season, improving their record to 11-2.
The Cats found a spark to ignite their momentum, leading to a massive victory over Churchill on Monday, Sept. 30.
The Cats looked to carry this spark to Olney, as they faced Sherwood on Saturday, Oct. 5, but they ended up returning to Bethesda empty-handed. The Cats struggled to progress their momentum forward in this matchup. Though they took the first set confidently, outscoring the Warriors 25-21; Sherwood stole the second set, spoiling the Cats’ high morale.
As the Cat’s morale sat low, Sherwood capitalized on offensive fronts, securing a victory in the third set. WJ was able to keep the game level with Sherwood, forcing a fifth set. Despite their best efforts, the Cats fell short of their expectations, ending the fifth set with a score of 13-15.
“Volleyball is a game of wins and losses. We have to continue to play our game and go into the gym every day and work harder to get better,” sophomore Emilia Zhang said. “There will be some losses and that’s okay because we continue to work hard and play our best. That’s our team’s mentality going forward.”
As playoff contention starts to approach, the Cat’s schedule begins to get seemingly less challenging. The Cats won each of their last four county opponents, including sweeps against Gaithersburg, Seneca Valley and Magruder. The fourth win came from a competitive 3-1 win over Montgomery Blair.
The Cats now look to close out their regular season triumph against Northwest on Friday, Oct. 25.
“Our game this Friday against Northwest is very important not only because it is our senior night, but if we win we have the opportunity to play at the county championships,” junior Celiana Caraballo De Jesus said. “We are capable of winning our next game and it will be a new experience for everyone on the team to make it to county championships.”
In the 4A West II region, the Cats currently lead the pack with an 84.62% winning percentage
and are the favorite to bring the region title back to “Wildcat country” and continue a deep run into the playoffs. As the playoffs start to come into the picture, the Cats look to face intense competition in arguably the most competitive 4A region.
“We have a great opportunity, but it will take our best every night to get there,” freshman Ellie Silberfeld said. “We’ve put in the work and we’ve got the players to get it done. Now it’s going to come down to who wants it the most.”
