Team rise from 120 to 57 in rankings at 125-team San Mateo Tournament
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SAN MATEO >> The Never Say Die 15s traveling volleyball squad, in its first year of existence, made quite the splash Saturday and Sunday during a 125-team tournament in San Mateo.
Ranked 120 entering play, the team had risen all the way up to No. 57 by the conclusion of the competition.
The NSD 15s won their bracket Saturday by going 2-1. They defeated Samba (Nevada City) 25-15, 20-25, 18-16 and Pulse (Ripon) 17-25, 25-21, 25-13 before losing to FPVC (Elk Grove 25-21, 21-25, 15-10.
“We placed first in bracket play since we were tied with Pulse, but won the head-to-head,” NSD head coach Marci Psalmonds said. “We were definitely the better team in the third game against FPVC, but we were pretty gassed and moving pretty slow on defense. All in all, the first day was a success for our first tourney playing together.”
During Sunday’s action, the NSD 15s again went three sets, beating Red Rock (Danville) 25-19, 16-25, 15-13, but lost to Red Rock (Redwood City) 25-22, 25-23.
“The girls came ready to play on Sunday and split with two different Red Rock teams,” Psalmonds said. “Our two losses could have gone either way, which was great to see. We came from behind in a lot of sets. They definitely lived up to the Never Say Die attitude. I am excited to watch this team get better and better every tournament.
“We still have a lot of improve on, but this group of girls are up for the challenge and are very coachable, which I love,” Psalmonds added.
The NSD 15s return to action in March when they travel to Las Vegas where 730 teams are entered.
“This should be interesting,” Psalmonds added.
During the San Mateo Tournament, Moana Chamberlin (Fort Bragg) finished with 27 kills, 15 aces and 77 digs while Jordyn Wurm (Kelseyville) had 22 kills, nine blocks, nine aces and 69 digs. Olivia Bushey (Kelseyville) had 26 kills and 35 digs.
Other team leaders were Madi Byrne (Mountain Vista Middle School) with 11 kills, four blocks and 10 aces, Gemma Tanti (Kelseyville) with 12 kills, Jaycee Lucchetti (Ukiah) with 52 digs and seven aces, with Olivia Arredondo (Mountain Vista Middle School) with 41 assists, Brooklyn Young (Kelseyville) with 49 assists, and Grace Peterson (Kelseyville) with 61 digs.
The NSD 15s finished with 45 aces and 323 digs.
