Boys volleyball dominated La Jolla High School with a 3-0 win in their first game of the season, March 4. After a close start to the first set where the two teams were neck-and-neck, co-captain, setter, and opposite hitter Jamie Bae (12) said the team quickly acclimated to working together on the court and put on the pressure, winning the set 25-19 and the second 25-14.
Co-captain and outside hitter Logan Lim (12) changed positions from middle blocker and Bae from libero, Lim to receive more and both Lim and Bae to hit more. The team took advantage of that, running plays combining those roles, particularly with Lim hitting from the back row or middle.
Leading 9-5 in the third set, the Wolverines implemented one such play. Bae set the ball high and fast. As Ethan Ibay (11) jumped to spike it, La Jolla’s players gathered to block him. The ball flew beyond Ibay, where Lim sprinted up from the back row to meet it. He landed a kill and brought the score to 10-5. The Wolverines won the third set 25-13 to complete the sweep.
“We destroyed them in three sets,” Lim said. “It was a good starting game to ease into the season. Our hitting and serving was really good that game.”
Regardless of Bae and Lim’s position switches, Bae said that the players worked extremely well in their positions.
“Our new middles, Ethan and Adam [Weir (11)], stepped up,” Bae said. “[It was the] first starting varsity game for both of them, and they really filled that role that Logan left. Logan did a great job on the outside. He had really low errors, a high kill percentage, and he passed great. He did incredible.”
In the first set, setter Dylan Nguyen (12) gave a quick and short set to Lim, who made a kill. Libero Evan Moon (12) said that the team prioritized speed in their plays all throughout the game in plays like that.
“[We were] just trying to make a quicker offense,” Moon said. “Every time there was a free ball, we made sure that we were all ready and we called out what we hit. I think that played a big role in our speed on the sets. Usually in high school, many people play slower offenses, but that’s easier for the other team to block.”
Despite having later tryouts than many other schools, Moon said the team was dedicated to building chemistry and improving, even practicing outside of school before the season started.
“We knew that other teams were already starting before us, so for the practices, we definitely had a more focused mindset,” Moon said. “We were prepared for these games. It’s all about repetition and learning from good players for our team. We went to open gyms, we would try and get as many reps as possible.”
Moon said that the team has become more supportive and positive this year.
“Last year, we were more emotional, and we would get mad after every point, but in this first game, we were more calm,” Moon said. “We overcome [things] by just moving on. It already happened, so we made sure that we learned from it and just worried about the next point. If we were overthinking stuff, it would have been bad. We were just mentally prepared for the game, and that made us calm. The team did really well on getting hype. After every point or on a big play, we’d just get really loud and I think that contributed to our win.”
Bae said he is looking forward to tackling the rest of the season with this team.
“As long as we keep team morale high and keep supporting each other, I don’t see any problems we could face,” Bae said. “We’ll do well with keeping going as we are, keeping picking each other up and keeping playing together more as a team. I’m really excited. I have high hopes, and I want to go win it all.”
