After a nail-biting back-and-forth match in the surprisingly empty Palo Alto High School gym on Thursday, the Lady Vikes were unable to top league rival Los Gatos, falling to the Wildcats in five games.
Paly (26-1, 8-1) came into the match ranked fourth in the Central Coast Section (CCS), while Los Gatos (16-9, 7-2) was ranked sixth.
The Lady Vikes got off to a quick start, going up by a score of 10-5 early in the first game, but the Wildcats struck back and went on to win the game 25-20.
After that, Paly would win games two and four, but fell in game three, setting up the deciding game five.
Initially, game five was tight and neither team gave in. But after the score was tied 9-9, Los Gatos libero Kelly Piper (‘11) served an ace, giving Gatos a 10-9 lead. The Wildcats pounded past Paly, winning the final six points en route to their 15-9 game five victory.
Wildcat outside hitter Maddie Guenther (‘11) expressed her excitement about beating Paly.
“This is the biggest feeling of accomplishment,” she said. “It was very hard, but it’s great that we finally came through.”
The Wildcats had lost the last four meetings between the two teams before tonight, dating back to 2008.
Paly opposite hitter Caroline Martin (‘12) believes the Lady Vikes’ serve receive is a place for improvement.
“I think we fought really hard,” she said. “By the end, we really just let up. Throughout the whole game we did really well, but Los Gatos played their best game.”
A demoralized coach Dave Winn, now in his fifth season at Paly, stood on the court in shock after the Los Gatos won the final point.
“I don’t wanna talk tonight,” he said.
Outside hitter Maddie Kuppe (‘12), usually one of Paly’s kill leaders, was unable to play due to a stress fracture in her tibia.
“I was close to tears before the game, I really wanted to be playing,” Kuppe said. “But sometimes you just have to trust your team.”
Los Gatos coach Dan Hoefer, who has been with the Wildcats four years, was happy to finally top the Lady Vikes.
“We had to be mentally tough,” he said. “Paly is good all around.”
Paly will play three more league games before the CCS playoffs begin on Nov. 10. The two teams will not meet again this year, as they are in different divisions for CCS.
“We joke that that’s been the ‘sad hallway’ for the last three years,” Hoefer said. “But it’s the happy hallway tonight.”