Volleyball gets served out by Vikings

The girls' varsity volleyball season ended with a disappointing loss to Whitman after an outstanding season of 12-2. The game lasted for two hours with a final score of 14-16, 6-15, 15-9, 12-15 in four matches.

Blair was seeded third in the 4A division after Gaithersburg and Springbrook. Whitman was seeded sixth in the division, but during the regular season the Vikings had defeated the Blazers once before. Blair received a bye for the first round of playoffs which began last Friday, November 1.

The first game began with the Blazers taking the lead by several points from the servers of junior Amanda Hsiung and sophomore Kristina Yang. However, Blair began falling behind as soon as Whitman's hitters began executing their moves. That game was close until the end, finishing at a close 14-16.

The Blazers seemed to fall apart after the loss of the first game, losing the next round quickly with a final score of 6-15. Whitman's Kim Burton continued to find holes in Blair's defense, making the Blazers scramble to retrieve her hits.

After their first two losses of the night, however, the Blazers showed their fighting spirit and came back to win the third game. They had grabbed the lead at the beginning with several serves from senior co-captain Jeanne Yang and kept up the offensive. The final score was 15-9 for the third game.

Volleyball games are played to three games out of five, and with only one of the three requisite games required to win in their hands, the Blazers had to fight hard in the fourth game in order to gain equal footing with Whitman. However, their problems communicating with one other and getting to the ball allowed the Vikings to climb ahead of Blair and ultimately win 12-15.

The loss was not monumental, according to senior Jessica Chang. "It wasn't as bad as in previous games," she said.

Chang also referred to a change in attitude as a factor in the way the team played. "Our mentality affected our playing drastically. When we were hyped up in the third game, we played really well, but when we were down, we were slower, sadder and, well, slower," said Chang.

Tina Yang and junior Lauren Wong are looking forward to next year's season as being even better. "I think the team will have to work extra hard next year since we are losing three valuable players, but with the right amount of work and dedication, we can do it," said Wong. Tina Yang agreed, "We're going to have a good season again next year!"