By Marcus Tolero/Photo by Marcus Tolero
The volleyball season is a little over a week old and the CCSF Rams are quickly establishing themselves as a team to watch heading into conference play.
The Rams have come out the gates red hot to open the year with a 6-1 record. With impressive 3-0 wins over Shasta College, Solano College, and Diablo Valley College (including 3-1 wins against Sequoias College and Foothill College), the Rams have shot up to No. 18 on the California Community College Women’s Volleyball Coaches Association State Rankings. They also hold the No. 8 spot in the Northern California Rankings.
The reason for this impressive start to the young volleyball season can be traced back to last year’s team, which finished the 2015 year with an overall 20-7 record (8-2 Coast-North Conference), a second-place finish in conference, and a playoff appearance. Returning from that team, are standout Kijana Best, Tatiana Jimenez, and Isabella Flores. All three sophomores have carried over the success of last year and the experience of being in a playoff race to this year’s squad.
“With Tatiana being hurt to start the season, Kijana has stepped up in her role as team captain. She has found her element and got comfortable as each set and match was going. It’s kind of like last year. She’s getting on the court and enjoying what she is doing,” Vae said. “With Isabella, she was a non-starter last year. She’s playing a big role this year as a starter now. She worked very hard through the spring and summer.”
The freshmen on the team have also played a huge role in the team’s early success. Jennifer Quarters-Styles and Lapepaaina Malietulua rank No. 1 and No. 3 on the team in points with 104 points and 47 points, respectively. Quarters-Styles had the best offensive game to date for the Rams on September 9 against Butte College. In the 3-2 win, Quarters-Styles scored 35 points and had 32 kills.
Head Coach Vae said it’s important to get off to a good start, especially with the caliber of competition that is in the Coast-North Conference.
“The Coast-North Conference is a tough conference, and Cabrillo College is the defending state champion. The team knows they have a lot to work on, but this volleyball team fears no one. Having so many teams in the top 20 says a lot about this conference,” Vae said.
The Rams next game is a home match against Gavilan this Friday, September 16 at 6:30pm.