(GILBERT, Ariz.) Gilbert Christian volleyball opened its 2023 campaign at home against the reigning 3A State Champion Snowflake Lobos on Saturday. The young Knights' squad showed resilience, tenacity and spurts of brilliance in the affair, even stealing the third set to force a fourth, but eventually fell 3-1 (12-25, 19-25, 25-21, 23-25) to the undefeated Lobos (3-0).
The experienced Snowflake team had not lost a set prior to dropping the third to the GCHS youngsters.
"I was impressed by how well this young group gelled tonight, despite not ever really playing together," Head Coach Alyssa Misuraca said. "They really trusted each other on the court, played gritty and didn't give up. I love that they pushed for every point and took risks out there."
Gilbert Christian struggled to find its rhythm early in the first set, and though there were several notable highlights from junior Kaedra Lloyd and the freshman outside-hitting duo of Sienna Cathey and Lillie Duitsman, the deficit was too much to overcome as Snowflake cruised to a 25-12 victory.
With the nerves out of the way in the second, the Knights took the court looking like a different group. Junior Kaila Aston started the set with a kill to put GCHS on the board first and a Lobos' hitting error saw the home team jump out to a quick 2-0 lead. Snowflake rallied to take the lead back but the Knights managed to stay close at 15-12 following back-to-back kills from Cathey and Duitsman. The freshmen continued to make a big impact as Duitsman smashed one off of the SHS block, then exposed a gap in the Lobos' defense with a perfectly placed tip to the middle to bring the Knights within two at 17-15. Cathey followed with a tip of her own to secure Gilbert Christian's 18th point, but in the end Snowflake used its experience to pull out the 25-19 win.
Everything seemed to click for the Knights in the third. Lloyd came out swinging to tie the set at five-all and junior Emma Caraveo gave GCHS a 6-5 advantage with an ace on the ensuing possession. Lone Knights' senior Rio Taylor put her team up one (8-7) with a powerful kill, but three-straight from Lobos was enough for Misuraca to signal for a timeout to regroup. Out of the huddle, Cathey posted a kill of her own to keep it within reach at 13-11, and Taylor slimmed it to one with an ace for GCHS. Junior Alexia Heyn stepped up next, making the Lobos pay for an overpass with a slam at the net to tie it up at 13-all, but a Knights' service error and a pair of Lobos' aces gave Snowflake a three-point edge going into the final stretch.
Instead of backing down, Gilbert Christian's defense intensified, stealing the momentum by way of a Heyn and Aston roof, and a massive solo block from Aston in the middle. Perhaps unprepared for the fight put up by the Knights, Snowflake faltered, opening the door for a successful Duitsman kill, a Lloyd and Taylor block, and a Duitsman ace which tied the set at 21-21.
The rest was all Gilbert Christian, as Taylor took over, crushing the ball for a kill to give her team the late lead. Cathey was next, getting toolsy with a tip, before Taylor spiked another to bring it to game point. Caraveo then used great court vision to end the final rally with a perfectly-placed deep shot to a wide-open Lobos' corner.
The energy stayed with the Knights early in the fourth, as GCHS jumped out to a 7-0 lead. The veteran Lobos took advantage of a few errors, however, and clawed their way back point-by-point, despite strong play from GCS. Heyn's attack looked strong on the opposite side, as she posted several kills for the Knights at the mid-way point to retain a slight lead. The two teams now seemed evenly matched, trading points until junior Michelle Lopez stepped up to serve and nailed three-straight aces to propel Gilbert Christian out front by five (15-10). Snowflake once again answered, taking advantage of a missed serve and an overpass, before coming up with an ace of its own which closed the gap at 15-14. Misuraca wanted to talk it over, and the timeout was the right call, as the Knights added to their tally on the subsequent play after a long rally. It was tight all the way to the end, tied as late as 23-23, and the stretch featured great intensity on both sides, but a call went in favor of the Lobos during crunch time and Snowflake was able to close the match with a slim 25-23 victory.
"Being able to come back when we were down was really promising," Taylor said. "It surprised me that we were able to play together and form trust so quickly. I think we need to work on starting off strong because it took us a bit to get warm tonight and that gave the other team the early lead. Lillie really impressed me today with her consistency on serves and her swing. She was a big contributor for the team and I don't remember her missing a ball in the match."
Lopez led the Knights in digs, while Aston took the crown in the block category. Lloyd was tops on the night in hitting percentage, followed by the newcomer, Duitsman.
"Michelle impressed me in her first match as libero, taking charge on the court and being a leader," Misuraca said. "Our young outside hitters, Lillie and Sienna, also excited me in their first high school match as freshmen on varsity. They really held their own and worked well under the pressure of this high-stress game."
With the loss, Gilbert Christian drops to 0-1 on the year.
The Knights are back in action at home against San Tan Foothills on Tuesday, August 29th. The match is scheduled for 6:00pm, and will follow the freshman/sophomore and junior varsity contests, scheduled for 4:00pm and 5:00pm, respectively.
-GO KNIGHTS-
