As CIF changed the scheduled time for the event, the girl’s volleyball team made it’s way down to the city for the evening to avoid the long morning drive for a 9 a.m. championship game.
Early to bed for an early rise, when game time came, the Bulldogs took a little time to wake up, but wake up they did.
Meeting the Saddleback Valley Christian Schools (SVCS) high school for in the CIF-SS championships at Cypress College, the ladies were just in automatic mode, matching point for point with SVCS until getting the little push and winning the first game, 25-20. Then the wheels came off. Game two saw SVCS get out to a 10-0 lead and the Bulldogs had wondered if they were still sleeping and having a bad dream. The girl’s came back, but ended up losing the second game 25-15. With the match tied at one game each, the next game would be the turning point, we knew it. SVCS came out strong again and showed they deserved to be in the championship and wanted it. In a hard fought match the Warriors, with the confidence growing from game two, pounded at the Bulldogs, giving it everything they had. The Bulldogs took the brunt of it and offered up some resistance, but SVCS was hitting on all cylinder’s and won game three, 25-23.
Hemet was down two games to one in the best of five. With the shadow of doubt creeping in from the corners of their minds, the Lady Bulldogs knew what had to be done to vanquish that doubt, they dug down deep into their hearts and souls and started to put things back together. In the fourth game, they all knew that they just had to play one game at a time, one point at a time, and have faith in one another, that would show them the way.
The girls pounced on every opportunity they had, spreading the offense to a multiple of players and with a defense that was responding with such great effort, keeping the ball up for the offense and the Bulldogs took game four, 25-22.
The Bulldogs found themselves again, believing that their time was not up, that their time was now, in this moment, in this gym, and with these girls, the magic was still there. They served, they blocked, they dug in, and they got out to an 8-6 lead. That is when the girl’s knew they had it, it was all working, they could win it all, again. The way they had played over the last few months was still with them, they were playing as a team, they were playing as a champion. The final score was 15-10, Hemet won its third straight CIF-SS Championship.
Congratulation ladies on a job well done from a school that is proud of everything you represent and have accomplished.