Each time senior outside hitter and captain Sadie Proctor went up to hit from the outside, fans in the stands shouted “boom” before she even contacted the ball, as if they knew what was about to ensue. And, when freshman outside hitter and Sadie’s younger sister, Ashlynn Proctor would make a kill, “She’s a freshman,” rang out across the gym.
The energy and decibel level were high as the Coronado High School student body and cheer team packed the stands on Sept. 17 to watch the girls varsity volleyball team wipe out their rival, Point Loma High School, in three sets.
Set 1: 25-19
It was a slow start for the Islanders with a few mis-hits and balls served out of bounds until the Proctor sisters – or as head coach Adeile Ahmu refers to them, “the Proctor power” – turned on the heat.
The PLHS Pointers were up 8-10 in the first set until a big hit from Ashlynn Proctor on the outside shifted the momentum. There was then a back and forth battle, followed by another big Proctor play, this time from Sadie, when an overpass from PLHS was shut down at the net with a kill that went untouched by the Pointers.
The Islanders extended their lead to 22-19, prompting a timeout from Point Loma after the nerves appeared to be high for the away team. Immediately after the timeout, Coronado won the point and quickly secured the first win of the match.
Set 2: 25-23
That momentum carried into the second set, as the CHS girls came in serving hard and hitting hard.
“Our serving is our bread and butter,” said Ahmu. “We were better at shutting them down and slowing them down.”
The pressure was weighing down on the Pointers, already defeated in the first set and down 9-3 at the beginning of the second, as they called another timeout. Once again, Coronado secured the next point out of the timeout with a block on the right side from junior opposite hitter Ariana Van Handel.
Balls continued to drop untouched on the Pointers’ side, as Coronado’s offensive lineup showcased individual skills, with the Proctors, freshman middle hitter Emily Albin and Van Handel getting kills, putting Coronado up 17-8.
“We had a lot of good power kills and our setter Emily [Page] did a really great job of spreading out our offense. We gave all of our hitters a chance to hit the ball,” said Sadie Proctor.
After more than doubling their opponent’s score, the girls let off steam momentarily, allowing PLHS to tighten their lead to 23-22, as the student body chanted, “Let’s go ‘nado.” Still, CHS managed to secure a 25-23 win in the second set.
Set 3: 25-19
PLHS battled hard in the beginning of the last set, tying the scoreboard all the way up until 10-10. After that, Coronado finished up their work, with dominating power from the outside leading to a 25-19 win.
“It felt really good to have a big student section,” said Page. “I think it showed them that volleyball is fun to watch, especially our team, and hopefully they’ll end up showing up more.”
The CHS girls varsity volleyball team currently stands at a 23-3 record as of Sept. 18. They face up against Patrick Henry High School on Sept. 27 and Mater Dei Catholic High School on Oct. 1.
