San Benito put a scare into visiting Notre Dame Wednesday night
and almost wound up with the upset.
But the Balers dominance over the Spirits came to an end. The
last time the Balers lost to the Spirits was on Sept. 30, 1999 in a
15-6, 9-15, 6-15, 4-15 loss in Salinas. Both teams wound up as
co-champions that year after the Balers won the second round.
San Benito put a scare into visiting Notre Dame Wednesday night and almost wound up with the upset.
But the Balers dominance over the Spirits came to an end. The last time the Balers lost to the Spirits was on Sept. 30, 1999 in a 15-6, 9-15, 6-15, 4-15 loss in Salinas. Both teams wound up as co-champions that year after the Balers won the second round.
After losing the first two games Wednesday to the top Tri-County Athletic League team, the Balers came back and won the third game in dramatic fashion and controlled most of the fourth game before a late rally. But Notre Dame held on for the 21-25, 16-25, 25-19, 25-27 win.
“We have had trouble staying in the entire game.” said Baler coach Chuck Schallhorn. “This is the first time we have been able to stick with it throughout the match.”
Of the four teams that have played the Spirits in league, the Balers came the closest to pulling out a win. The Spirits have won 19 games and have lost only three.
“We just try to play our game regardless of the opponent,” said Spirit coach Heather Imwalle. “I knew they (the Balers) had several players who graduated. But they have a strong program, and I expected them to be good.”
Early on, the Balers (12-13, 2-3 TCAL) found ways to contain Notre Dame’s many weapons. Alyssa Given had 18 kills and Randy Goodenough had 14 despite numerous blocks by the Baler front line.
“You do what you can and make the adjustments, and you go with it,” said Schallhorn, a first-year coach with the Balers. “You know how to play the game; it is just a matter of if you can execute against better teams.”
San Benito held a slight advantage in the first game until Notre Dame moved ahead 7-6. The Saints eventually built up a 12-7 lead and forced the Balers to call a timeout. Melissa Moore responded with a ball that Notre Dame wasn’t quite able to block.
The Balers got within 13-12 when Jamie Temperino and Leslie Schipper combined for a block. The duo combined again for a block to make the score 16-14, and the Balers closed within one as the Spirits were called for a double hit.
Although San Benito tied the score at 16, Notre Dame came up with some tough undiggable cross-court hits from the big dogs to put the game away.
After a strong first game, the Balers were unable to get any momentum going and fell into a 12-2 hole.
“We came out flat,” Schallhorn said. “We have had trouble with that this season. We lose a game and we get down and then kind of Eeyore it. We started come back in the second game, and that carried over into game three.”
Goodenough hit several jumps serves in a row. Not to be outdone, Moore, who had four aces in the game, countered with her own drop jump serves to get the Balers within 19-14 and force Notre Dame to call timeout. But the early deficit was too much for the Balers to overcome.
“When you are down two games it is tough to stay in it mentally,” Schallhorn said. “They never give up.”
In the third game after Notre Dame’s Megan Pura couldn’t continue because of a stomach flu, the Balers tied the score at six on a spike by Schipper. Schipper and Alyssa Fowles led the Balers with 12 kills each.
San Benito took advantage of a carry and a long serve to take a 9-8 lead. Fowles came up with a kill to give the Balers a 12-9 advantage, but Notre Dame tied the score at 13 on a pair of putdowns by Given.
The Spirits tied the score a couple times but were unable to take the lead again in the game.
“We were getting our serves in,” Schallhorn said. “Coach (Juan) Hernandez calls all the serves. The kids were hitting their spots, and Notre Dame wasn’t able to run their offense.”
San Benito took a 3-0 lead in the final game. Kathleen McCullough and Amy Baxter dropped in several nice serves to help keep the momentum going.
The Balers took a 20-17 lead after outside hitter Mallorie Wilson, who had four solo blocks in the game, reversed an intended tip and dropped it back into Spirit territory.
San Benito moved up 22-19 and forced Notre Dame to call a timeout, but Notre Dame tied the score at 23 to draw a Baler timeout.
The Spirits took their first lead of the game. But the Balers immediately tied it up at 24-24 on a tip by Amanda Boyd and took the lead on a long hit. Notre Dame re-tied the score and went ahead as the Balers were called for being under the net. The Spirits capped if off with an unreturnable serve.
San Benito will compete in its final tournament this weekend in the 16-team Panther Challenge. The first game is at 8 a.m. on Saturday against El Dorado at Presentation High School.
“We still have a young team whether we like it or not,” Schallhorn said. “But we are finally starting to come together on the court.”
JV/Frosh note: The JV team lost in two games, and the freshmen team won 25-19, 26-24 in a strong team effort. Samantha Patton had a good all around game, including four kills. Danielle Scibuola did a good job setting, adding three aces. The Balers were coming off of a three-game loss to Notre Dame in a tournament last Saturday.
