The crowd erupted for the McLean seniors as the gym turned dark. A spotlight shined on the nine seniors for their last volleyball home game of the regular season. The atmosphere in the gym was electric; the music and crowd was upbeat.
Yorktown took a quick 4 point lead, striving with good offense and team chemistry. Both teams lost a couple of points due to faulty serves. The McLean spirit dwindled and called a timeout at 2-8.
Many long rallies ensued, with some being minutes long. McLean won the first one, and their team spirit snowballed into a huge streak. The score was 12-12 and the atmosphere was tense.
The lead wasn’t solid; both teams had strong offense and defense. Senior captain Julie Daniels sent multiple aces, solidifying the McLean lead. Yorktown tried to take a time out at 20-17, but McLean’s momentum was too strong, finishing the set at 25-18.
“I was really proud of us seniors winning the first set because we normally don’t play with all seniors, so it was really special to have that moment where it’s our last year, and we can all play together one last time and win a set,” senior setter Claire Wang said.
The second set also started off with Yorktown gaining a small lead, which carried throughout the set. McLean lagged in offensive power, but their defense made up for it. Even though McLean put in their best efforts, they finished the set at 18-25.
“Towards the end, we picked [our efforts] up,” Wang said. “It wasn’t quite enough, but we fought back as much as we could, and we’re all proud of each other for that.”
The third set followed the same pattern, with a quick lead from Yorktown. Senior hitter Bay Briceno spiked multiple kills against Yorktown, intensifying the atmosphere. The spirit from McLean didn’t carry through the third set, though, as they continuously fell behind Yorktown. At 10-21, McLean called a timeout to try to regroup, but it proved to be too late, and they lost the set 14-25.
The last set was similar to the previous ones; however, it was McLean that got the early lead. McLean and Yorktown ran neck and neck until the score was 21-19 for McLean, and Yorktown took a timeout. The Highlanders fought the best they could, but Yorktown’s offense was able to find the holes in McLean’s defense and ended the set 21-25 for Yorktown.
Still the Highlanders were happy to play one last game with their seniors who have played together for multiple years.
“I’ve spent a lot of time with the seniors, and I’ve grown so much because of them. I’ve been on a team with them for a while. I’m really sad to see them go,” sophomore setter Brie Wang said. “They’re determined, strong, and destined to do great things. “
