Girls Varsity Volleyball vs St. Bonaventure

The girls varsity volleyball team survived their fourth 5-set match of the season, this time against St. Bonaventure Thursday night on the Mesa – 21-25, 26-24, 25-21, 23-25, 16-14 . It was truly a nail-biter for everyone in the gym – even the referees stated that it was one of the best played matches they’ve seen all season.

The drum of the stands was a steady beat of cheers from both sides and an inspiring moment for the team late in the eve was looking up in the top right corner of the bleachers to see several Cate “cheerleaders” jumping and cheering with their blue poms poms!

St. Bonnie’s game plan to hit down the line was working against the Rams. Cate switched up their defensive strategy to another plan which seemed to neutralize the Seraphs, but a bit too late in the first set leaving the Rams with a 21-25 loss.

In the second set, the battle continued with each team exchanging leads. The Seraphs were sitting pretty at 24-22 but Cate fought back to nab the next four points to win the set 26-24.

Cate was cruising in the third set with a comfortable lead of six and seven points. Once again, St. Bonnie edged back to come within three points at 23-20, but two kills by the Rams finished the set out at 25-21.

Another close fourth set loss, 23-25, set up the exciting deciding fifth set. St. Bonnie jumped to a 1-4 lead, but Cate gritted it out exchanging leads to a 14-14 tie. The relentless battle resulted in Cate capturing the last two points for the set and match win.

This match was truly a team effort by all and is one to remember! The coaches have experienced a lot of exciting matches at Cate, but this win was a serious grind to the finish. Each point was a battle with long rallies and great defensive and offensive plays by both teams. Of course, coming out on top makes it extra special.

With one league match left, the winner of the league is yet to be determined. Cate must beat Grace Brethren to claim the Tri-Valley League title. (A loss will cause a possible tie with Foothill Tech.)

Cate is now 15-3, 6-1 with the final match of the season at home against Grace Brethren on Tuesday, October 15th (JV 5:00 / Varsity 6:00).