Northern Section Division III Volleyball Finals: West Valley volleyball sweeps Orland
The West Valley volleyball team was surgical in its 25-8, 25-13, 25-16 sweep of Orland on Saturday to grab the Northern Section Division III title at Foothill High School.
Everything was working as the Eagles carved up the Trojans from the start for their third straight D-III title. Additionally, West Valley has won seven Northern Section titles in the past 15 years.
“These girls start in club and we’re blessed to have them learn and know our system so that when they get to high school it pays off,” said coach Melissa Church.
The match started with a pair of flush kills from senior hitter Shelbie Rogers. The 5-foot-10 power hitter led the Eagles this season with 354 kills and added 11 to her team-high tally.
And as hitters like Rogers and Bentley Chaffin, who had five first-set kills, were pinpointing shots past the Trojans, it started with tremendous serve receives, passes and sets.
And while the pin hitters draw the gasps with thunder kills, it’s often the back row and setter that make all that possible.
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That was the case Saturday — and for most of the year — for the 40-6 Eagles.
“We have amazing passing, some of the best in the league and our setter is solid,” Church said. “We know that we have to have that ball control and it starts with the back row. That’s our goal, to get the ball to the attackers. Our defenders, from the block to the back row to the pass is our strength.
Libero Whitney King and setter Kayla Wiley put on a clinic that allowed Rogers, Chaffin, Reese Byxbe and sophomore Rainessa Matthews to swing in rhythm.
The Eagles jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the first set, extending it to 18-6 on a Byxbe ace and then 23-6 after several Orland hitting errors.
The second set was much of the same for West Valley as Dub V Nation jumped out to an 11-3 lead on Chaffin’s kill as Church began rotating a host of bench players in for playoff experience.
“It’s always exciting to get girls into a playoff match, even if it’s for a few points. You get that experience so that they’ll never be nervous (going forward),” the coach said. “Sixteen (players) is a lot to get into a match, but it pays off.”
Rogers ended the second set 25-13 with a kill and the third set played out much as the first two as the Eagles’ faithful prepared to celebrate as Byxbe ended the match with a kill.
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Now, West Valley awaits its seed in the CIF state tournament. Last year, the Eagles grabbed a No. 4 seed in Division IV and advanced to the Regional semifinals before falling in five to eventual state champion Ripon Christian.
Church said last season only fueled the fire to advance further than last season.
“We’d love to have the opportunity to host if the seeds play out,” she said. “We’re a veteran squad starting six seniors and I think we could make a run if it all lands the right way.”
Aaron Williams has covered North State sports for more than 20 years in print and on the radio. He works at MaxPreps as the national volleyball and girls basketball editor while also writing about football nationally.
This article originally appeared on Visalia Times-Delta: Northern Section Finals: West Valley volleyball sweeps Orland
