Piedmont clinches winning record
The Piedmont High School girls volleyball team has clinched its first winning season since 2017. The Highlanders are 14-10 with three matches remaining in the regular season plus the North Coast Section playoffs.
“I definitely think this team has gotten better at some of the things the coaches have asked,” coach Mike Glass said. “We always want more as coaches.”
Piedmont got two wins over Encinal and another over Castro Valley. The first came in straight sets at home against Encinal on September 22. The Highlanders won, 25-21, 25-20, 25-14.
“We were able to keep them on their heels in terms of our service game,” Glass said. “We were able to keep that pressure on the whole game.”
Maika Ting led Piedmont with 17 kills. Izara Dando, Sofia Meyer and Lucia Dorsey each had six. Mia Bechtel had three aces and no service errors. Dorsey added two blocks. Allyson Huynh had 19 digs with Carina Vora and Olivia Stevens adding 14 apiece. Vora had 14 assists and Nora Trombi had seven.
The teams met again at Encinal on September 29 and this time the Highlanders had to scrap for a 25-23, 23-25, 27-25, 24-26, 15-8 victory.
Ting led the way with 19 kills and Dorsey contributed 13.
“Maika has been incredibly consistent,” Glass said. “It’s really great to see her progression.”
Vora and freshman Sarina Hill had three aces apiece. Huynh had 36 digs while Vora had 24 and Stevens had 22. Vora led in assists with 31 while Bechtel had 15.
“A week later, it was a real real tight game,” Glass said. “I don’t think we had real strong focus at the beginning of the game. Credit to the Encinal passing, their passing was much stronger. That just makes the game a lot harder for us if we can’t keep them on their back foot. The team woke up and was able to take the fifth convincingly.”
On October 1, Piedmont swept visiting Castro Valley, 25-21, 25-17, 25-17. Ting had 13 kills while Dorsey had 10. Vora and Stevens each had a pair of aces. Charlotte Bailey recorded two blocks. Huynh had 16 digs with Stevens recording 14 and Hazel Schaeffer 11. Vora had 25 assists.
After falling to visiting Acalenes in four sets on September 15, Piedmont fell at home to Berkeley on September 17, 25-19, 25-18 17-25, 25-19. The Yellowjackets lead the West Alameda County Conference Foothill Division with a 6-0 record and are 14-3 overall.
Ting once again led in kills with 13. Hill had three aces while Dorsey had two blocks. Vora had 19 digs with Huynh adding 17. Vora also had 16 assists.
The Highlanders dropped a pair to Bishop O’Dowd. The Dragons prevailed at home on September 23, 21-25, 25-18, 26-24, 25-22.
“It was a fun game,” Glass said. “Bishop O’Dowd is a good team. You can see from the stats that the sets were very close. We took the first set. Then we lost set two, three and four in very competitive fashion. The flow in this game was in serve-receive. We started off serving quite strong and getting them on their heels. They’re passing got stronger and their service pressure amped up on us.”
Ting had 16 kills and Meyer added seven. Huynh, Schaeffer and Hill each had two aces. Huynh had 21 digs while Vora added 10. Vora had 22 assists, Bechtel 12.
The rematch at Piedmont came on October 8, with the Dragons again winning in four sets, 25-18, 15-25, 25-22, 25-18. Ting had 13 kills to lead the Highlanders. Stevens had five aces and Hill had four. Huynh had 17 digs and Stevens added 11. Vora had 20 assists.
On October 6, Piedmont lost at Alameda, 25-17, 25-16, 28-26. Dorsey led the Highlanders with seven kills while Ting had six. Huynh had two aces and 17 digs. Vora added 12 assists.
Piedmont plays at Berkeley on October 14, then at Castro Valley on October 20. The Highlanders conclude the regular season at home against Alameda on October 22.
Glass said the defense has been a key.
“Our defense just continues to be really strong,” he said. “Olivia Stevens, Allyson Huynh, Hazel Schaeffer, Sarina Hill up from JV.
“As always, Allyson is all over the court on defense. It’s more than just the digs, she’s a captain on the floor, she directs traffic, gets people in the right place and is a real leader out there.”