Big Valley Christian volleyball sweeps Bret Harte, advances to D-V final
All season, the Big Valley Christian volleyball team struggled with its serve. But you wouldn’t know if you watched the Sac-Joaquin Section Division V semfinals Tuesday night.
In the biggest game of their season, the Lions served their best, recording 17 aces — just their sixth time this season recording more than 15 aces — and most importantly, keeping their service errors below five for just the eighth time
“We’ve been working so hard all season long to have minimal serving errors,” Lions coach Sarah Beers said. “When it comes to serving, we typically have four to six missed serves per set. … But they did amazing tonight.”
The result? A three-set, 25-12, 25-8, 25-16 sweep over Bret Harte to reach Saturday’s D-V section championship match at Cosumnes River College at 11 a.m.
The Lions had a relatively easy road through the playoffs. Tuesday was Big Valley’s third sweep in as many games this postseason. While they have not been challenged much during the postseason, they have been keeping practices competitive so when they run into another top-three seed, they will be ready.
“(Bret Harte) served hard and gave us a lot back,” Beers said. “They mixed stuff up so we weren’t seeing the same things over and over.”
Entering Tuesday’s match, Jordan Beers led the state in kills (620) and added 20 more in another impressive offensive outing in the semifinals.
In the middle of the first set, Beers tallied four kills to power the team to an 18-9 lead. Three Lions aces powered them to a first-set win. Big Valley Christian rolled through the second set and withstood a run by Bret Harte in the middle of the third set, cutting their lead to three points. After the Bullfrogs made it a 17-14 Lions lead, Big Valley went on an 8-2 run to finish the match.
Freshman Faye Dobson finished with a team-high seven aces and added seven kills. Beers led the team with 11 digs and Ella Alavezos tallied a Lions-best 26 assists.
“We did well,” Jordan Beers said of the team’s overall play Tuesday. “We had a lot of great serves and we knew what we were going into and came prepared.”
The two sides met twice earlier this season. As a result of realignment, the Lions moved from the Central California Athletic Alliance to the Mother Lode League. They played the Bullfrogs twice this season and won both matches, 3-1 and 3-0.
The Lions were dominant in their first MLL season, going 9-1. Between the CCAA and MLL over the past four seasons, Big Valley Christian is 39-1.
“Every school we faced was competition for us,” Sarah Beers said of playing in the MLL. “It wasn’t like we were going in and just blowing out teams.”
REMATCH WITH BRADSHAW
The Lions set their sights on Bradshaw Christian for Saturday’s Division V section championship match.
The Lions and Pride are familiar foes. Last season, the Pride and Lions faced off in the 2023 Division V section semifinals in a match that saw Bradshaw sweep Big Valley 25-23, 26-24, 25-21.
“I don’t know if they’re the same as last year, but from looking at their film, I know they’re strong,” Beers said. “They’ve got a big block, they’ve got a strong front row, so I’m excited.”
The Lions will play in their second section title game in four seasons. They beat Forest Lake Christian as the No. 1 seed in 2021 and lost in the semifinals in 2022 and 2023.
“We’ve been prepping the girls and getting it in their heads that this is what we’re working towards,” Beers said. “Hitting hard and fast, mixing the ball up, making sure we’re moving the ball around.”
By reaching the section semifinals, the Lions qualified for their fourth straight CIF Northern California Regional playoffs.
Whether they win or lose Saturday, Big Valley knows it will have at least one more match. It will find out its draw, along with everyone else in the state, once this weekend’s section championship matches are over. According to the CIF website, brackets will be released the afternoon of Oct. 10.
Volleyball playoffs
Ripon 3, Bear River 0: After winning every Trans-Valley League match and sweeping its way through the Division IV playoff bracket, Ripon is in its third straight section championship game and looking for its second blue banner in that span. The Indians beat Sonora in the 2022 D-IV title match and lost to rival Ripon Christian in D-IV last season. The Indians beat Bear River on Tuesday night 25-16, 25-10, 25-17. Ripon is the No. 1 seed in Division IV and will face No. 2 Liberty Ranch in the final at Cosumnes River College at 1 p.m.
Liberty Ranch 3, Hilmar 0: The Division IV third-seed Yellowjackets fell to No. 2 Liberty Ranch, 25-19, 25-18, 25-17 in the Sac-Joaquin Section semifinals. Hilmar’s season is not over, however. By reaching the section semifinals, it qualifies for the CIF Northern California Regional postseason. The state playoff brackets will be released after Saturday’s section championships.
Vanden 3, Ripon Christian 1: Ripon Christian’s quest for a fifth straight section title fell one round short with Tuesday’s match against No. 1 Vanden. The Knights, who were the No. 4 team in Division III, took the first set over the top seeded Vikings, but fell 23-25, 25-13, 25-15, 25-18. Ripon Christian swept Lathrop in the first round and beat Central Catholic in a five-set quarterfinal thriller. They will await their NorCal playoffs draw, which will be revealed after Saturday’s championships.
