By MARTY JAMES
martyjames.sports@gmail.com
"Sophomore Night" for the Napa Valley College volleyball team was a time for players and their families, starting out with a pre-game recognition ceremony, the presentation of gift baskets, and lots of photos.
The team's six sophomores were introduced prior to the Storm's Bay Valley Conference match against Contra Costa College-San Pablo on Friday, Oct. 24. The class, comprised of Adelina Avila-Navarro (libero/defensive specialist), Rylee Santos (setter), Willow Diamond (middle blocker/right-side hitter), Caitlin Kenney (middle blocker), Sydnee Coulthrust (setter) and Ava Pendelton (outside hitter/defensive specialist), has come a long way, making great strides in the game, in two years.
"I'm really proud of their skill development," Napa Valley head coach Scott Bishop said. "Over that course, they've each really grown and developed into some really, really competitive players. They're a tight knit group, on the court and off. It's been great to see them really getting along together.
"We integrated our freshmen as well this year, and they were a big part of kind of bringing that into our culture. So, really proud of them, and the time I've been able to spend with them."
Despite losing in five sets, 3-2, Napa Valley played very well in the match against Contra Costa, getting solid all-around play everyone, while coming back after losses in the first and third sets. The scores were 25-23, 19-25, 25-20, 19-25, 15-11.
"We're playing some really good volleyball right now, so I'm happy with a lot of things. We wish for a different outcome tonight. But the fight was there, and that's what has really been there the last three weeks, at a very consistent level," said Bishop.
The Storm's six sophomores – introduced before the match by Brandon Lucas, an athletic trainer and the public address announcer – each received a gift basket of assorted items.
"It was definitely really fun having a lot of family come out tonight. Really appreciate all the support," said Bishop.
The sophomores for Contra Costa (8-7 overall, 4-3 Bay Valley Conference) were also introduced.
Avila-Navarro and Kenney are the Storm's captains.
It was the third straight loss for the Storm (2-13 overall, 2-5 Bay Valley Conference). They are tied for fifth place in the conference standings.
Napa Valley lost earlier in the week to first-place Solano Community College-Fairfield, 3-0. The scores were 25-15, 25-14, 25-20.
"I feel like we've hit a good stride," said Bishop. "We're still not playing our best ball yet. We're gaining ground on that, so we're headed in the right direction.
"I feel like we're really competitive heading into the second half of conference and looking forward to being able to compete."
Napa Valley was ahead in the first set, 8-5, 9-6, 11-7, 12-8, 21-17, 23-21. But Contra Costa came back, scoring the last four points of the set and surging ahead. The Storm was led by Aly Watty, Keana Resultay, Coulthrust, Santos, Pendelton and Kenney.
Napa Valley was ahead in the second set, 3-0, 5-3, 7-5, 10-8, 13-9, 14-11, 15-12, 17-14, 21-17 and 22-18. The Storm scored the last three points of the set. They were led by Watty, Coulthrust, Kenney, Pendelton and Santos.
Napa Valley and Contra Costa were tied in the third set, 11-11. The Storm was behind 13-12 and 15-13. The Storm used a 3-0 run to pull within four points at 23-19. Napa Valley was led by Diamond, Avila-Navarro, Pendelton and Watty.
Napa Valley was ahead in the fourth set, 5-3, 7-4, 8-7, 15-12, 18-14, 20-16 and 23-18. The Storm scored the last two points of the set. NVC was led by Watty, Pendelton, Resultay, Coulthrust and Kenney.
In the fifth and final set, NVC was ahead 5-1, 6-3, 7-4 and 8-5. The teams were tied 9-9 and 10-10. Contra Costa pulled away, scoring four straight points to go in front, 14-10.
"The effort and energy were definitely there tonight," said Bishop. "Everyone's super excited for 'Sophomore Night.' We kind of had to work a little bit more on just staying focused, actually taking it down a notch, and just playing our game and trying to hold ourselves accountable to the level that we're used to being able to play."
Resultay suffered an injury in the third set, but was able to return to the match.
After the match, Bishop took time to talk about each of the Storm's six sophomores.
* Adelina Avila-Navarro: "Adelina has been doing a great job the last two years as our libero. Just really athletic, a quick defensive player, always making plays, very vocal out there. Pretty special."
* Caitlin Kenney: "Caitlin has been our middle. She was middle/right-side last year; this year, middle, and has really added a ton of offense to us. She's one of our taller players, so she's a force at the net. A lot of blocks tonight as well, too. And as a captain, has been just an excellent leader and just very mature and just a player that helps guide everyone in our team along. So really appreciate that."
* Sydnee Coulthrust: "Coming back from some injuries, Sydnee really has fought through that. One of her goals was to make sure that she was healthy and ready to go for her 'Sophomore Night,' which she definitely accomplished. Did a really nice job serving and setting tonight."
* Rylee Santos: "Rylee, our other setter, set both seasons for us. An excellent athlete. Just runs the offense at a really great tempo for our hitters."
* Ava Pendelton: "Ava, our amazing outside hitter, a really competitive server-hitter. Had a great hitting night tonight. Did a great job in the back row serve-receiving as well."
* Willow Diamond: "Willow, our other middle, also contributed a lot to our offense. Really picked up her serving and got a couple of blocks herself tonight. So again, the journey for her has been excellent over these last two seasons."
In the match against Solano, the Falcons were led by:
Kaylie Reyes (11 kills, 13 set assists, three service aces, four digs, 14 points), Aliyah Aguiar (nine kills, three block assists, 10.5 points), Lilliana Mass (10 kills, 10 points), Giana Guintu (four kills, 21 set assists, 15 digs, six points), and Jasmine Ting (four service aces, 10 digs, four points).
In the match against Contra Costa, the Comets were led by Maria Grace Zeledon (21 kills, 38 digs, 22.5 points), Sasha Bartel (six kills, 23 set assists, six service aces, 12 points), Aaliyah Taylor (seven kills, seven points), Jazaliyn Huerta (14 set assists, three service aces, four points), Karelyn Gonzalez Vargas (seven digs), Alexis Ponce (four digs), Monica Figueroa (two kills, three digs), Jennifer Martinez (four kills), and Angela Samonte (23 digs).
NVC's next match is Wednesday, Oct. 29 at College of Marin-Kentfield at 6 p.m.
* Marty James is a freelance writer who makes his home in Napa. He retired on June 4, 2019 after spending 40 years as a sports writer, sports editor and executive sports editor for the Napa Valley Register, a daily newspaper in Napa County. He is a 1979 graduate of Sacramento State and a member of the California Golf Writers & Broadcasters Association. He was inducted into the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Hall of Fame in 2016, the Vintage High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2019, and the Napa High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2022.