Eagles Soar Past the Panthers

Brenda Linares and Elizabeth Morales|March 16, 2018

Last night, our PVHS Varsity Volleyball team hosted the Templeton Eagles. The Panthers have won four consecutive preseason games until yesterday night. The Eagles beat the Panthers in three sets: 23-25, 23-25, and 21-25. The boys affirmed that this was not their best night, but even so the scores were quite close. We are very proud of them for how far they have come in the past few years. We wish them all the best of luck and we can’t wait to see what they have in store for us! Come support them in their next home game next Tuesday the the 20th at 5:30 pm as they take on the San Luis Obispo Tigers. Don’t forget to come meet our new PVHS head coach, former Panther volleyball player, Ralph Quintana, and assistant coach Chris Basulto!

“After completing all our preseason games I believe the team confidence is at an all time high. Entering our league at 4-1 is a real ego booster. If these preseason games are any indication of what our season will look like, it’s going to be a really good one! Some things our team needs to work on is believing in themselves and continuing their confidence boosters. They’re a great group of guys and until they realize how good they actually are I don’t think we will see there full potential. Another thing the team needs to work on is communication. In a game of Volleyball communication is KEY! Without it, it’s very very difficult to win a game let alone a set. As a coach I am super excited for our season to begin! This year looks very promising. Given that it’s our last season in the PAC-8 it’s a little bittersweet. I would like to let other people know to come out and catch a game when we’re hosting a team. It’s a fun atmosphere it’s great energy and they’ll get a good show! For being a first year head coach it is a little stressful but I wouldn’t change it for anything. When you love a sport as much as I do volleyball, it gives me joy to have the opportunity to teach and mold amazing players. Being an alumni it’s like I have come full circle. From being a player on that court to actually coaching my own team. I must say for being my first year I couldn’t be happier with the team I’ve chosen and the way they are performing.” -Head Coach Ralph Quintana
“I think that our season this year is strong and more confident about playing. This sport is tough but we tend to have our A game every time we’re on the court. This season we have a chance to make it to top 3 for CIF and that’s our goal we want to achieve. Tonights game vs Templeton was a good game they are a really competitive team. They had some good hitters but we lost with a good fight. Some things we need to improve for this team is our serves. I feel like I need to work on my serves. I am ready for this season since it’s my last year of playing. I will give everything I got on the court. PVHS students and staff should come support our volleyball games. They are really fun to watch it’s free and we also need our panther spirit to bring the team up. Go show support!!” -Armando Tamayo (12)
“After five pre season games, I believe my team will have the best season in volleyball that we’ve ever had.
I feel that I didn’t perform to my true potential, but I didn’t do badly either. Some things that my team has to work on are bringing up their confidence, and communicating in the court. I need to improve on my hitting, and my confidence. I’m honestly super ready and excited for season! What I would like to say to the people reading this is that even though in the past we lost a lot this year will be different.” -Kevin Gonzalez (12)
“I think our team has come a long way since the first game. We always strive for the best. We have only lost this pre season game. This loss will only motivate us to want to succeed and win as much games as possible. I think I performed pretty good. There was a couple of mistakes here and there but I felt like I tried to give it my all through out the game. Our team is already good. We just need confidence and trust in one another for each of us to play at our best. We need more communication and trust that we have each other’s backs. I am totally ready for the season. This is not only my last year but for four other teammates as well. Knowing that it’s our last year makes us want to play harder as a team and individually. We also know that three freshman are on the team and the future lies in their hands. Come out and see some volleyball! It may not be your ideal sport to watch but it does get pretty intense and the fans by just being there gives us motivation and support.” -Craig Ragan (12)
“After coming so far in league games, even in preseason, we have a better shot that what I’ve seen the past 2 years I’ve been here. I have not seen our team succeed so much before and this year feels like our year! Tonight I preformed well but I have done better before. Tonight’s game was unexpected in our results. Normally the varsity team loses horrendously, however our team did great tonight and it’s an improvement that’s been needing to come. It’s not just me who preformed well it’s my team as well. Our team’s weakness is serving. We allow it to get in our heads after one miss serve but we can pull ourselves together and serve the ball twice as harder as long as we aren’t in our heads about it. Our strengths are our tactics; we can hit the ball in any spot, hit lightly, hit hard, change position, fake the opponent with a fake hit, prepare and hit a ball half the time, and we got more we can learn to do. I can play in every position but what I really want is my block to be bigger and better. I’ve been doing weights on days I can when I don’t have rehearsals for footloose to help build up my leg strength and get higher above the net. I just mainly want to get a better vertical and better defense. I’M PUMPED FOR THIS SEASON, THE BOYS ARE, THE COACHES ARE, AND RECENT NEWS ARTICLES HAVE BEEN TOO. Get ready because we are nothing like past years!” -Nickolas Equihua (11)

“After 5 preseason games, I think our team is overall doing really good. I feel like if we get everything together and our team clicks , we can probably make CIF. I think I performed pretty good. I had some errors but thankfully I made up for those mistakes. One of our teams biggest strengths is our ability to play smart. We know how to adjust to our opponents game and how to place the ball on the court. Our biggest weakness is probably covering our hits. We stand around when our player hits and whenever it comes back to us we aren’t ready. I think personally, I need to work on my ability to cover and pass. As a team, I think communication and being able to talk on the court is important. I’m so ready for this season. This is my first year playing volleyball for high school and I’m excited to learn new things. To the people reading this, you guys should come to our games. It’s always going to be a good game when your panther volleyball team plays :)” -Marc Cabeliza (9)