by Gene Helfman

Contributor

The Lady Lobos put their undefeated 9-0 record on the line against Shoreline Christian Sept 30th before a large and enthusiastic home crowd. Things started slowly in the best of five match, with the Shoreline Chargers jumping out to a lead that grew to 12-8, many of Shoreline’s points coming on serving errors by Lopez. The Lobos overcame their apparent early-game jitters and tied things at 15-15, then went on to win 25-21. The second game found Lopez coasting to a relatively easy win, 25-12. The third game was much closer, the lead changing hands several times, and the game tied at 9-9 and 15-15. Forced errors by either team were few, leading to a number of long rallies. Strong serving by Lopez closed out the game at 25-20, allowing Lopez to sweep the match 3-0.

Coach Marina Steinbrueck had nothing but praise for her athletes afterward. She said they had practiced hard in preparation all week, anticipating a close contest. Those expectations translated into nervousness early on, as shown by the serving errors in the first game. But once the Lady Lobos settled down and “played their game,” Coach Steinbrueck said they came together as a team and played up to their ability.

Lopez Volleyball has home matches against league co-leader Grace Oct 3, followed by contests on Oct 20 and 21.