MOUNTAIN VIEW — When Archbishop Mitty visited undefeated St. Francis on Tuesday, it was the first time the Bay Area’s best girls volleyball teams played a best-of-five set match against one another this season.
Each point was heavily contested, with spikes by St. Francis’ Erin Curtis barely saved by a diving libero Demi Harris and Sammy Franco blocking a possible Mitty kill just enough to allow a teammate to recover.
St. Francis’ 3-0 victory was the best of Bay Area volleyball, as each set was heavily contested.
Though Mitty led by several points in each of the last two sets, St. Francis prevailed 25-21, 25-23, 25-23.
If things go the way coaches, players and schools want, there will be a few more matches between the Central Coast Section powerhouses before the season ends.
For St. Francis senior Havannah Hoeft, these are games she has been looking forward to since last season.
“We’ve been ready for this game since the summer — since last year we played Mitty in the CCS playoffs and NorCal finals,” Hoeft said about the team that beat St. Francis in a Northern California regional final last season. “This game means a lot to us.”
There will be more.
Not only will St. Francis play a West Catholic Athletic League match at Mitty on Oct. 26, but the teams could face off this weekend in a Stockton tournament.
After that, matches in the CCS and NorCal playoffs could follow.
“I hope we get to play them four more times,” said Mitty coach Jon Wallace, who coached Santa Clara University to 13 NCAA tournaments before taking over the high school program in 2020. “They’re an absolutely quality opponent, and they’re going to make us better.”
The programs have rich histories in the sport as each has filled trophy cases with championships after championships.
In the CCS Open Division playoffs last season, Mitty outlasted St. Francis in five sets in the semifinals, then swept Menlo School in the final.
The section title was Mitty’s 24th in various divisions.
St. Francis has 17 section championships dating to 1976 but none since 2011.
Beyond the section playoffs, Mitty has appeared in more state volleyball finals (19) and won more state championships (14) than any California school.
Reaching that stage this season won’t be easy for the San Jose program.
St. Francis has clearly been the best team in the CCS and Bay Area. The Lancers are 19-0 and have two wins over Mitty, including a two-set sweep of the Monarchs in early September.
Aside from Hoeft and Franco, players such as Whitney Wallace and Faith Crouch comprise a team that makes few mistakes.
“Some of our players may not be seniors, but they were counted on to play last year,” first-year St. Francis coach Lake Merchen said. “Them having that experience has helped them this year.”
Though it lost Tuesday, Mitty’s resume is solid.
The Monarchs (19-5) have played a brutal schedule, with losses to Cathedral Catholic-San Diego, Mater Dei-Santa Ana and Redondo Union-Redondo Beach at the Durango Fall Classic, a national tournament in Las Vegas.
St. Francis is the only Bay Area team to beat Mitty.
“I like our schedule,” Wallace said, “and I like all of the challenges we’ve gone through and how we’ve grown.”
One of the players Wallace spotlighted was Audrey Liddle, an outside hitter who both blocked and attacked with equal enthusiasm against St. Francis. Another was Demi Harris, whom Wallace referred to as a steadying presence on the floor.
“We give a lot of responsibility to our liberos, and Demi has done an amazing job for us,” Wallace said. “She’s just been so steady, keeping us in system and keeping us believing.”
Merchen and Wallace credited their school’s administrators for prioritizing the success of the volleyball programs. The St. Francis gym was filled and energized with cheering spectators Tuesday.
The St. Francis portion quieted in the third set when Mitty took a 17-14 lead and appeared ready to force a fourth set.
The silence transitioned into a murmur, then light clapping, then full-blown cheers as St. Francis rallied and showed why it has lost only one set this season.
The St. Francis players don’t expect their next matchup against Mitty, which could come in Stockton on Saturday, to be any less difficult.
“We’re both good teams, and we’ll both progress as we go through the season,” Hoeft said. “I think playing them again will make us a better team.”
Source: www.mercurynews.com