Stone Ridge Christian comes up short in D-VI final for third consecutive season

The Stone Ridge Christian volleyball came into Saturday’s Sac-Joaquin Section Division VI championship match blind.

The Knights knew nothing about Woodland Christian.

It didn’t take long to find out the Cardinals were a strong team. Top-seeded Woodland Christian dominated with a strong service game and two strong middles as they swept the third-seeded Knights 25-14, 25-12, 25-21.

It’s the third consecutive year Stone Ridge Christian fell in the final.

“I know the seniors and all of us are disappointed we didn’t win, but it’s a big accomplishment to get here again,” said Knights junior Aubriana Vander Woude, who led the team with 14 kills.

Stone Ridge Christian (20-11) struggled to get any momentum. The Cardinals took an 8-3 lead in the first set. When Stone Ridge regrouped to cut the deficit to 10-8, Woodland Christian responded with a 7-2 run to open a 17-10 lead.

The Cardinals were led my middle blocker Megan Trottier, who finished with 14 kills. Outside hitter Karlie Talbott had eight kills, and Lexi Matsumura and Grace Truesdell came up with big swings when called upon.

“We didn’t know anything about them,” Stone Ridge Christian coach Ken Shaw said. “Maybe if we had some more info we could have come up with a better game plan. They were a fantastic team. My girls played their hearts out.”

After dropping the first two sets, the Knights were more competitive in the third set. Justine DeJager (seven kills) and Sarah Jordan played well at the net. Ellie Ann Vander Dussen finished with 20 digs and Tara Silva had 23 assists.

After the Cardinals pulled out to a 5-0 start in the third set, Stone Ridge cut the lead to 10-9 after back-to-back kills by Vander Woude.

Woodland Christian used a 5-0 run to build a 19-12 lead, but the Knights answered with a 5-1 run to cut the lead to 20-17 and force a Cardinals timeout.

“Once we started playing in the third game, we loosened up,” Shaw said. “We had it within a three- to four-point game, though, but they came out on top.”

The season isn’t over for the Knights, who will open the NorCal Regional playoffs Tuesday.

“It was a great run,” Shaw said. “It’s our goal to get here every time. I never know what I’m going to get at the beginning of the season. These girls worked so hard this season. I had no club players this year. All these girls play different sports. A lot of them are getting ready to play basketball after this season. So for us, it’s very exciting to get back here each year.”

This story was originally published November 21, 2015 at 5:59 PM with the headline "Stone Ridge Christian comes up short in D-VI final for third consecutive season."