De Anza’s women’s volleyball team won its home game against City College of San Francisco 3-0 in a shutout match on Wednesday, Oct 1, just a week after beating CCSF away; De Anza now holds a record of 10-9 for its ongoing season.
The Mountain Lions fought a close battle with CCSF during the first set, but ultimately pulled through to take the set 25-19; as the team gained its momentum through the next two sets, De Anza showed out 25-13 in the second set and 25-3 in the final.
Despite the team shutting out CCSF just like it did a week ago, Head Coach Dawnis Guevara said this game “felt very different from both sides.”
“(CCSF) brought a lot more energy today than they did last week, especially when we first started,” Guevara said. “They were playing a lot tougher.”
Guevara also said an injury took out CCSF’s head coach last week, which she thinks may have affected the team’s overall spirit.
“I felt like (CCSF) was a lot more locked in today than they were last week,” Guevara said.
However, De Anza responded promptly with a total of 28 kills in the game.
Brianna Dalzochio (De Anza No. 10), 19, child development major, held De Anza’s top number of kills for the match with a total of 10.
“The discipline in how number 10 (Dalzochio) played tonight was great to see. A lot of power from her,” Guevara said.
The players themselves had a lot of good things to say about each other’s performances.
“I think the best play was definitely TT (Tyerra Taulealo) coming in and getting that kill off the block at the end,” Ayla Cakisic (De Anza No. 1), 19, biology major, said.
The crowd roared with excitement as Taulealo soared upwards to block the ball, ultimately getting the point for her team with a strong hit.
Dalzochio said Violeta Velasquez (De Anza No. 5), 18, psychology major, who had just been cleared from an injury earlier that day, played into the Mountain Lions cinching the win.
“Violeta’s been out for a bit because she had a concussion, but I think she put up a great fight this game, considering what she’s been dealing with,” said Dalzochio.
De Anza players also debuted their pink jerseys for the month of October in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month; additionally, the team will be hosting a Dig Pink Campaign to raise money for breast cancer awareness during their home game on Friday, Oct. 24.
The team will start competing in conference games next week, with its first match on Wednesday, Oct. 8, at San Jose City College.
“I think as a team we are more connected this year than we were last,” Dalzochio said.
