Fired up for their first home game, the Varsity Volleyball team faced off against the Vista Ridge Rangers in a fierce battle on Tuesday Sept. 2. Each set was very close, with both teams using quick offensive tactics. However despite their speedy plays, the Lady Warriors fell short. The final score of the game was 0-3. 

“[before this game] we had three tournaments in the first three weeks of school,” Captain Grace McCluskey ‘26 said. “So we were [prepared], it’s just all muscle memory and just [applying] your [volleyball] IQ.”

Swiftly starting the game with a bang, Caroline Miller ‘28 scored the first point of the game with a clean block off a fierce Ranger hit. Shortly after, Dakota Hodge ‘26, Miller, and Emily Xue ‘27 worked together to block another hit from Vista Ridge’s side of the net. Westwood’s blocks proved to be the backbone to their momentum throughout the game. The first period was extremely tight, both teams within just a few points of each other. Despite the Warriors stellar defense, they came in just 5 points short. The final score of the first set was 20-25.

“The best part about defense is that it’s so much more than just the physical part of the game,” Avnee Upadhye ‘27 said. “[Defense] brings a lot of energy into the mental part of the game, so it’s really just the foundation of the sport.”

During the start of the second set, Vista Ridge swung many aggressive attacks towards Westwood. Upadhye prevented them from getting easy points by diving and working for many loose balls in the backcourt. Leading the charge, McCluskey had back to back kills helping Westwood advance their lead. Quickly Vista Ridge brought their momentum back into the game to take back their lead after Westwood held it for the first half of the set. This set was even closer than the first, however the Warriors fell just two points short. The final score of the second set was 23-25. 

“If it’s not a great set, we try to put it on the court and trust our defense to play around their ball,” McCluskey said. “All I think about [when we are down in a game] is making the plays better and always improving our team.”

Determined to come back, the Lady Warriors started the third set with high intensity, leading by 4 in just the first few minutes. The Rangers didn’t let this lead hold long, they quickly stole back the momentum as the second half of the set began. During the match, Sriya Chakravarthy ‘27, Emma Waghorne ‘27, and McCulskey worked efficiently together to block many of Vista Ridge’s intense hits. The Rangers, resilient, continued to mix up the placement of their hits; eventually tying Westwood into a bind, unable to track their kills. With this uncertainty and miscommunication, the Warriors came up short with a final score of 19-25.

 “[If you are losing a point or set] just forget about if you keep focusing on the present, if you dwindle on the past you’ll never move forward and will lose confidence,” McCluskey said.

Despite their loss, the Lady Warriors will return to the court ready to face Weiss in a tough battle on their home court on Friday Sept. 9.

“I thought it was a very flat game on and off the court,” Dakota Hodge ‘26 said. “I do believe we have it in us to bounce back and win our next game.”