Pitman 5-set thriller nets school's first section title

DAVIS Lindsey Vander Weide is known for her big right arm.

When the Pitman outside hitter goes up for a kill, the contact is more like an act of violence as the ball is slammed back in her opponent’s direction. But impressive as her offensive display usually is, the senior admitted her swings had a little extra oomph during the fifth set on Friday night.

Vander Weide wouldn’t be denied as she racked up five of her match-high 28 kills in the fifth and decisive set as the Pride rallied for a 25-20, 22-25, 23-25, 25-15, 15-12 victory over Pleasant Grove in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division I final at ARC Arena.

It’s Pitman’s first title in school history.

“Honestly, all I was thinking about was how many games we’d won all season,” said Vander Weide, who also had 21 digs and three blocks. “There was no way we were going to win all those games just to lose in the section final. This means everything to the seniors, because we improved and went a little further every year. All that was left was winning it all and we did it.”

Pleasant Grove (30-8) didn’t make it easy on the top-seeded Pride (41-1).

Behind the balanced attack of Alexis Light, Sumeet Gill and Kayla Williams the Eagles won sets two and three to take a 2-1 lead.

It was uncharted territory for a Pitman team that had only trailed twice during the season, but Kristen Pontes-Christian’s squad gave the response she was looking for.

Setter Maddy Halteman (match-high 56 assists) ran the show as the Pride regained control of the match. Vander Weide, Madison King (10 kills) and Whitney Barnes led the attack as Pitman evened things back up with a 25-15 win.

“I was very pleased with our response after going down 2-1,” Pontes-Christian said. “The girls battled. It was exactly the kind of match I knew it was going to be and we rose to that challenge.

“Before the fifth set I just reminded of what was on the line. Making history for Pitman. Making history for Pitman volleyball. We just needed to stay consistent and control the match and that’s what we did in the last two sets.”

Pitman rode its game four momentum to 6-2 and 11-6 leads in the fifth set. PG refused to go away quietly. A couple big kills by Light got it right back in the match, pulling within 14-12.

It was only fitting that Vander Weide finish what she started, securing the title with a cross-court kill.

This story was originally published November 22, 2014 at 12:39 PM with the headline "Pitman 5-set thriller nets school's first section title."