The girls’ volleyball team celebrated their senior night last Thursday, October 12th, with a triumph against University High School. A crowd of LACES friends and families, dressed in blue, came out to support.
With respective scores of 25-22 and 25-11, LACES nabbed the first two sets, setting the stage for a potential 3-0 victory. However, a nail-biting 25-23 loss in the third set tightened the score, putting the team back on their toes.
“I think we all knew that we could do better, we knew we had it in us. We might have let it slip a little bit because we were confident from the win before, but we got ourselves together and just pushed through,” said senior player Lia Berkovich. The team ended up with a clean 25-10 win in the fourth set, propelling them to victory. The final point was met with an uproar of applause from LACES fans.
“I think we played amazing… we came back from a deficit in the first set, so that was really fun. We had to push ourselves and keep working to overcome that,” said senior Isabel Stutz. The win set the celebratory tone for the senior night ceremony that followed. Along with Berkovich and Stutz, Thursday was also the final league home game for twelfth graders Mia Orr and Sadie Furminiak. Posters for each of the four players decorated the gym as speeches were given, pictures were taken, and flowers were handed out.
“I remember making the posters for the seniors every year, and now my name is on the posters… It’s so sad when people are like, ‘Oh, I’m gonna miss you’ and it hits that I won’t be here next year,” Berkovich said.
The seniors’ volleyball career isn’t over just yet, however, as LACES will soon enter the playoffs. Building on last year’s second-place finish in the Division 3 championship, hopes are running high for another outstanding playoff run.
“I just hope that honestly, we continue doing what we’re doing. Playing our hardest, having a good time, and being supportive of one another. And I think that that’s exactly what’s going to happen,” Stutz said.
The team will be advancing to the division two playoffs. Their first playoff game will be at home on Monday, October 23.
