Sometimes the team that’s ahead is more vulnerable than the
team that is behind. You hear so often about how momentum can be fragile in
that once it is lost, it is hard to regain.
In 1998, I had a chance to witness that as the Vintage
(Napa, CA) Crushers hosted the Ceres (Ceres, CA) Bulldogs in a CIF Sac Joaquin
Section Div. I volleyball playoff match. Vintage was the No. 8 seed and Ceres
was the No. 9 seed. The winner would face a trip to play No. 1 seeded Lincoln
(Stockton, CA) two nights later, not what one would call a reward but if you
are on the court, you might as well try to win and make memories. On this
night, Vintage rallied for an 8-15, 9-15, 15-8, 15-4, 15-5 win over Ceres.
Setting
the stage: The Crushers were in a ‘tweener like position
throughout the season in that they were good enough to beat the lower end teams
in the Monticello Empire League like Armijo, Fairfield, Vallejo, Hogan but had
difficulty with the higher end teams like Napa and Vacaville. No shame there
but it depicts the position Vintage faced.
The team’s resume wound up amounting to a No. 8 seed in a
16-team postseason bracket.
One other side note, high school volleyball in California
was played under the sideout scoring format before going to the rally scoring
formula a couple of years later. In the sideout format, only the serving team
can score. In rally scoring, either the serving or receiving team can score.
Thumbnail
sketch of the match: The first two games, Ceres’ athleticism
shined in winning several long rallies. In Game 1, Vintage took a 7-5 lead
before the Bulldogs scored 10 of the last 11 points. The wind continued to be
at the Bulldogs’ back in Game 2 as Ceres took an 11-2 lead. Vintage rallied to
cut the lead to 11-9 but got no closer.
Facing a 2-0 hole also meant that the Crushers faced
elimination for the rest of the match. Vintage came out with a balanced attack
as Kristen Max and Raquel Cantillon delivered blocks at the net. Lyzzy Barkas
and Lisa Schwarze supplied the defense and setter Ashley Mason directed the
offense and served in outstanding fashion.
The Crushers had two 5-0 runs in Game 3 on the way to a
15-8 win. What I remember most was thinking whoever wins Game 4 will win the
match. If Ceres won, the match would have ended. If Vintage had won, I felt it
would win Game 5 because the force was on its side.
In Game 4, the Crushers broke Ceres’ will. The game started
with a Mason service ace and ended with a Cantillon kill as the Crushers won
15-5.
Vintage had momentum and the home crowd on its side. The
Crushers dominated Game 5 with a 15-5 win. Ceres had the body language of a
defeated club.
What
it meant: In the long run, very little. Two nights later, Vintage
lost in straight sets to a Lincoln team that steamrolled its way to an SJS Div.
I title. No shame there. Vintage was behind the eight-ball from jump, both
playing the No. 1 seed in their building and having to expend every last ounce
of energy to get there.
The win over Ceres was a reminder in that as Yogi Berra
once said, “it ain’t over until it’s over.” The match also served as a reminder
that it’s a matter of perspective. From a Vintage point of view, the match
could be seen as a great comeback. From a Ceres standpoint, it was a collapse.
The middle ground answer, however, is that momentum is
fragile. While I am no volleyball expert, I find the comeback in rally scoring
format even more impressive than had come in rally scoring format. With rally
scoring, momentum is especially fragile. With sideout scoring, momentum is
harder to build.
No comments:
Post a Comment