WRITTEN BY RIELLE CHLOE CANLAS AND JACOB A LOPEZ
As the boys volleyball season progressed, we interviewed the varsity captains. The role of a captain is a key job in any sport. Joshua Lopez (Class of 25’, Varsity Captain) said, “(Captains need) selflessness and confidence.” A strong leader is crucial for the success of a team. Jared Dijamco (Class of 24’, Varsity Captain) adds, “I think a leader shouldn’t be afraid to say anything or to speak up because I think everybody on the team should hear what someone has to say.” Jared demonstrates selflessness and confidence as a captain. He doesn’t shy away from speaking up and he listens to what the other players on his team want to say. Captains need to make sure they discipline their team, and make sure they don’t fool around in games or at practice. Joshua Lopez said, “All I do is I make sure my team is in check, hold everyone accountable, and be the loudest on the court, just lead.” In games, Joshua makes his presence known by being loud and keeping a positive attitude on the court. Jared Dijamco added, “…I have to lift the team up or give encouraging words and at the same time, kinda critique or tell them what they need to do better or what we need to do better as a team.” Jared strives to help his team improve and bring his team up. But with all seriousness, there’s still things to enjoy. Joshua mentions, “I enjoy being close to coach and having respect of my peers, and the responsibility of a captain is going to help me grow as a player and a person.” Although Joshua knows his importance as a leader, he takes this as an opportunity to grow and become better for not just himself, but for his team. Jared said, “I guess I enjoy being the person that my teammates can come to for help or just being a leader in general.” Both Joshua and Jared recognize the importance and the level of responsibility that it takes to be a captain. They also exceed the expectations the coaches have for them, and the team itself. Overall, the contributions of both Joshua and Jared have impacted the team in a positive way. They keep the team together, uplifts their team morale, and hold each other accountable to help them improve. by Kyle Abadilla, Chloe Canlas, and Nam Thai
Edited by Jacob A Lopez Gabrielle Barajas, JV coach of the girls and boys volleyball team, has contributed greatly to the growth of her athletes. With the fast approaching 2023 boys volleyball season, tryouts are soon to occur and she’ll be observing. For those who are trying out, she’ll be looking for specific characteristics that will help build the team. We asked her about what traits she’s looking for in an athlete and she said, “Someone who has an overall good attitude, motivation, and commitment.” After tryouts, practices typically begin on a day to day basis, where each player is pushed to their limits. Coach Gabrielle mentioned, “We want to push them further and further every practice, helping them improve… everything.” With that, this all gets applied to in-game situations. Time at practice can pay off to accomplish their goals. Coach mentioned that her intentions this season are, “…to bring out the best in every single player on the team and to push them there.” With these goals in mind, it gives players a reason to stay motivated. Although perfection and improvements are always strived for, conflicts can occur on the team. Rather than letting problems go, Coach prefers to call on her players to fix their mistakes. She said, “Be head on, you address the conflict, you call people out on their stuff when they’re doing something wrong and let them know when they’re doing good.” But as volleyball is a common high school sport that’s played throughout parts of the school year, the relationship between academics and sports is important. Academics always come first and sports come second. Like Coach Gabrielle said, “Academics always comes first because that’s what you can take with you for the rest of your life. Everything you learn in school, everything they teach you, is something you can always hold onto. Being an athlete, can always come and go. One day you’re on top of the world, next thing you know, you twist your ankle and you’re done. So, it’s always academics that comes first.” Overall, Coach Gabrielle Barajas has a positive outlook on this year’s volleyball season and she can’t wait to see how this season comes along. By: Kyle Abadilla, Rielle Chloe Canlas, Jacob A Lopez, and Nam Thai
Sports and athletics are a big part of the VAAS community. One of the showcased sports is volleyball! In this segment of the newspaper, we’ll do a rundown on the progress of the girls’ volleyball team and their experiences in this program. During the 2022 fall season, the girls’ volleyball team experienced both memorable victories and harsh losses that have pushed them to try even harder. Yet through everything, the team successfully made it all the way to the second round of playoffs, ending their season. On 10/25, our girls' volleyball team played their first round of playoffs against Amino Robinson (Los Angeles). The girls brought home a victory and would play their second round against GALA on 10/27. In the first set (game played) of the first playoff game, our VAAS girls came through and won. For the second set, Amino took the win, although it was a close score. The girls came back for the third set with more motivation. As player Rielle Chloe Canlas said, “I wasn’t worried we lost the set, I just wanted to push even harder to win the game even sooner.” The team won the third set by a large margin of 10 points and gave it their all to finish the game in the last set. For the fourth and final set of the game, our VAAS Vipers pulled through by winning 5 more points than the last set. With one more practice remaining, the girls focused mainly on their defense and ran new attacking plays. We interviewed varsity captain/setter, Khaylie Abadilla, to get to know about her experience on the court and how she felt toward the game. She said, “Being a setter allows me to take control of the court and teaches me how to lead a team. Although it’s stressful to have a whole team count on you, it’s still fun to be able to assist my teammates in getting kills (points won by a direct hit).” Later that week, the girls played their second round of playoffs. With a dominating victory over the Amino Robinson Monarchs, our girls' volleyball team moved on to playing against GALA (Los Angeles) on 10/27. An intense game inevitably marked the end of the 2022 girls' volleyball season. With a defeat, losing three sets back to back, our girls' volleyball team would not be moving forwards in the playoffs. With the responses from the players themselves, we can say there are high hopes for next season. We hope this helped inspire you to try out for the team in upcoming years! See you around! -Volleyball Reporter Team |
AuthorsKyle Abadilla Archives
April 2023
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