This year’s UC High Girls Varsity Beach Volleyball Team is successfully diving all over the sand in order to secure a win. At this point in the season, the girls have become accustomed to playing with one another and are now focused on playing the best volleyball they can. Meanwhile, they are having fun and striving to win as many matches as they possibly can.
Coach Amanda Wiggins said, “I think the team is really doing a great job of coming together and playing as a team. The girls seem to love playing with and against each other, and they work really hard at every practice to get better. They genuinely enjoy coming to practice, so that makes my job easier.” Freshman Jordan Freedman added, “We have a lot of fun, and we work really hard.”
These beachy Lady Cents are exceeding their coach’s expectations with only one loss in the season so far. “I have been very impressed with the team so far. Coming into the season, I had coached quite a few of the girls before, so I knew their potential and what they could do if they stayed competitive and were coachable. I guess you could say I had pretty high expectations, and they have definitely surpassed my expectations thus far,” said Wiggins. “I thought La Jolla Country Day was our toughest competition so far. They made us have to fight for every point and earn our victory.”
High school beach volleyball is a little different than other sports, as there is no set roster for both varsity and junior varsity, and the A, B, and C teams are constantly changing. The top three teams are determined based on each week’s practices. “Every week at practice we do a challenge court and different girls and pairs are always winning those, so a lot of the girls are pretty evenly matched,” said Wiggins.
Along with Point Loma High, the team will have some tough competition playing against Helix High, La Jolla Country Day, Mission Bay High, Coronado High, and others. This year, playoffs start May 5 and the girls have high hopes to do well. “My partner, Grace, and I want to make it past the second round of playoffs,” added Goldstein.
Wiggins said, “As the season progresses, I would love to go undefeated as we continue to prove that we are a force to be reckoned with.”
Many of the girls on the team this year are also a part of UC High’s indoor volleyball program, which takes place during the fall season. Playing on the Beach Team has many benefits that can help improve multiple skills in an indoor player’s game.
Wiggins said, “Beach volleyball helps a lot with indoor volleyball. It helps with ball control, reading the court/hitter, your vertical, communication, explosiveness, speed, and power. It really is a game changer for those girls who do both throughout the year.”
“I really just want to focus on improving my mechanics and working on my vertical so that I’m ready for indoor next season,” Waldichuk said.
Don’t miss out on these ladies’ dynamic play and action-packed sets.