8th Grade GIRLs Volleyball

Edited by Journalists: Isabella Jaramillo, Annie Vo & Daryll Gutierrez

On May 17, the 8th Grade CYO Girls Volleyball team participated in the first ever Moreau Catholic High School Girls Volleyball Invitational Tournament. They went on a 5-0 record throughout the whole tournament, and showed their Cougar Spirit by dominating every other team. 

The CYO girls started their day by waking up bright and early, arriving at House of Hustle just in time to play their first game at 7 AM.  They started off their day with a win by winning each set by more than fifteen points. This then led the girls to a 4-0 streak, passing the elimination round and advancing to the championships.

Finally, the St. Joseph CYO Girls Volleyball Team's last game was against Russel who previously before their championship game, went on a 4-0 record just like them. It was an intense and nerve-racking game. Russel took the first set at 14-25, winning by more than 10 points. After the first set, the girls had realized that this team was harder than any other team they had faced, so a huddle was desperately needed in order to plan their next steps. A few minutes before the second set started, the St. Joseph CYO head-coach noticed that every single player on the Cougars already gave up. She took advantage of this short break and gave them an uplifting speech, which inspired the girls enough to begin the set in the lead by 7-0. Coach Cecilia had said, "The only one who is beating you is yourselves. You are all in your own heads. Go out there and have fun." The girls took this as motivation and knew they were going to have to fight hard for the win. 

The second set came to an end with St. Joseph winning, 25-12. The crowd was cheering with encouragement throughout the set which helped the girls persevere. The game was now  tied and it finally came down to the last set where whoever won, won it all. The girls didn't want to relive their previous championship game where they lost in the third set, so they started off strong, leading with 5-0. St. Joseph was winning midway with 10-4. Eventually, the girls started to become a bit relaxed, which led to a close score of 13-14. Russell was up and and needed only one more point to win. However, SJS  caught up making the score 15-14. Both teams fought hard through a long rally, but in the end result, the Cougars fought harder and persevered. The St. Joseph Girls Volleyball team had finally got the win they deserved. The seven years of hard work and dedication had paid off. The St. Joseph CYO Girls Volleyball Team 2023-2024 had made history by being the first championship winners of the first Moreau Catholic High School Girls Volleyball Invitational Tournament ever held.