Girls’ Volleyball, 44-3, emerged victorious over the 31-6 Palisades Dolphins last Tuesday, October 12, beating them 3-1. 

The Venice home crowd roared and shook the building. Bodies flew all over the court as the two teams went back-and-forth in an intense, close first set with Palisades winning it 29-27. 

The Gondoliers would bounce-back and obliterate the Dolphins in the last three sets to win the match, beating them 25-17, 25-14 and 25-13, respectively. 

According to Coach Raul Aviles, the team was able to control the pace and flow of the game to get favorable matchups the rest of the game. 

“After losing the first set we kept our composure and were able to have the mental fortitude needed to execute our game plan,” Aviles said. 

Senior Logan Takahashi, a captain, believes the team’s confidence was a main driving force behind their victory over Palisades, recognizing the potential they are capable of. 

“We showed up ready to play our game, not worrying about what the other team was doing,” Takashi said. “We haven’t beaten Pali for many years because of our belief in ourselves and trust in one another. We were able to overcome our underdog mentality.”

Takahashi also compliments the team for serving and passing really well throughout the entire match. 

Palisades coach Carlos Gray thinks his team was outplayed, outcoached and outworked in every facet of the game by the Gondoliers. 

“Just have to learn from it and we’ll bounce back for sure,” Gray said.