Volleyball Preview: Taft Raiders vs. Sotomayor WILDCATS
The Taft Raiders will square off against the Sotomayor WILDCATS at 6:00 p.m. on Friday.
Taft and Warren met for a duel on Tuesday where Taft couldn't get it done. Taft came up short against Warren, falling 3-0.
Taft took the loss but they managed to make steady progress, increasing their score in every set they played. The match finished with set scores of 25-16, 25-18, 25-22.
Despite their loss, Taft saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Paisley Quarles, who had eight digs and 18 assists, was perhaps the best of all. Quarles is on a roll when it comes to assists, as she's now posted 15 or more in the last four games she's played dating back to last season. The team also got some help courtesy of Olivia Gonzalez, who had 13 digs.
Meanwhile, Sotomayor entered their tilt with Stevens on Tuesday with two consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with three. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 3-2 win over the Falcons.
Sotomayor was staring down a 2-1 deficit headed into the fourth set, but they rallied to take the next two for the win. Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 19-25, 25-16, 23-25, 25-21, 16-14.
Sotomayor got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Sophia Castillo out in front who had 17 digs and three aces. Another player making a difference was Sierra Deloza, who had 22 digs and two aces.
She wasn't the only good server: Sotomayor was lethal from the service line and finished the game with 14 aces. That's the most aces they've managed all season.
Taft has traveled a rocky road recently having lost seven of their last nine matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 15-22 record this season. As for Sotomayor, they pushed their record up to 22-14 with the win, which was their third straight at home.
Taft came up short against Sotomayor when the teams last played back in September, falling 3-1. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Deloza, who had 19 digs. Now that Taft knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
