Despite losing many of their stronger
players, the team played one of their best
games against KIS, making it the turning
point of the season.
Losing many of their strong players
made the season tough at first, however,
“the younger players on the team
were really showing grit and passion
on the court” , said Jessie Lee, senior.
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Many of the girls had a goal to improve
their own skills and build a strong relation-
ship with one another as they grew closer
throughout the season. Jennifer Kim, sopho-
more, said “my personal goal for the season
was to improve my serves but be able to get
along well with my teammates at the same
time.”
Getting to know each other and learning
to work together as a team was just the be-
ginning as they continued their way through
the season. The girls were soon approaching
a home game against KIS, who has “always
been a tough team to beat”, according to
Jessie Lee.
The girls were falling behind and they
were down by two sets. It had been an
“intense” and “nerve wrecking” game
as they had a hard time staying positive as
the game went on. However, with confidence
and focus, the girls were able to catch up and
win as they played up to five sets.
“Our home game against KIS was a huge
win for us. It was a hard fought game to five
that required the whole team to work to-
gether and build each other up even when it
was difficult to mentally recover. During that
game our team learned to trust each other
and to build each other up when they were
mentally and physically exhausted”, Coach
Forbes commented.
When asked what made this KIS game
the turning point of the season, Sarah Jin,
junior, said “despite the fact that KIS
was leading with two sets, every sin-
gle member showed a great amount
of enthusiasm and support for each
point, which is why that game was
the turning point of the season.”
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1. Jennifer Kim performs an overhand serve during the game against Chadwick. The game was the first home
game played for the season. 2. Jackie Kim reaches to spike the ball. During the game, players had to be prepared,
standing in ready position in order to defend the ball. 3. Winky Kim watches the game on the bench while wait-
ing for her rotation with Angela Kang. The players on the bench observe the game and prepared for their time on
the court. 4. Angela Kang, Cindy Jung, Joanne Lee, Olena Vasyltsova, and Jessie Lee huddle as they encouraged
one another after a point was earned. For every point, players celebrated, maintaining their energy and focus
throughout the game. 5. Angela Kang and Joanne Lee hold hands before switching their positions. Since players
consistently rotate, a switch allows players to transition into the position they are most comfortable playing in.
6. Cindy Jung sets herself up for a bump. To have a successful hit, she depends on her teammates
to receive and set the ball. 7. Coach Harding, Coach Forbes, and June Lee hand out water bottles to
the players during half-time. Throughout the season, coaches, players, and managers fully commit-
ted to the team, having positive attitudes as they were motivated to finish the season successfully.
8. Top Row: Coach Forbes, June Lee, Jackie Kim, Jessie Lee, Winky Kim, Clara Shin, Coach Harding;
Bottom Row: Jennifer Kim, Olena Vasyltsova, Angela Kang, Cindy Jung, Joanne Lee, Sarah Jin. 9. Angela Kang
bumps the ball passed to her during the game against Chadwick. Angela was a libero who received the first ball
served by the opposing team.
Throughout the game against KIS, the
girls started to feel more tired and felt less
motivated to play hard. In times like this,
Jessie Lee “tried to lighten the atmosphere
when the girls seemed down after a loss or
just from being tired”.
Jennifer Kim said the team was able to
win “because we cooperated and commu-
nicated really well on the court. What made
this game so significant was that we were
able to turn the game around and defend our
home”.
Although it was a tough fight, the girls
eventually won the game, pulling through to
five sets, winning three to two.
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