Girls’ volleyball soars past DMHS in season opener

The high school girls’ volleyball teams squared off against the local rival Daegu Middle High School (DMHS) at the Jetnasium on Sept. 3. With the season just underway, the friendly provided the Jets a chance to test their skills and teamwork early. Despite limited practice time, both junior varsity (JV) and varsity brought home straight-set wins for the first time in the history of the crosstown series.

While the Jets fielded only one team in last year’s match, this year saw both junior varsity (JV) and varsity compete. “We don’t really have a JV. For the game today, we just put our bench players in– people who don’t start or get much play time,” Captain Pauleen Zafra from DMHS said.

Junior varsity wasted no time to heat up from the opening whistle. Starters featured setter and captain Mika Lee (77), left-side hitters Elly Song (11) and Kaylie Jeong (19), middle blockers Elena Lee (8) and Chloe Woo (51), opposite hitter Esther Kang (42) and libero Stella Kim (97). The squad warmed up through hitting and serving lines as they prepared for a best-of-three match against the Warriors.

Shaking off the morning rust, Mika Lee’s solid sets sent the Jets into high gear, which allowed clean offensive plays. Building on the fast start, front-row hitters unleashed a barrage of line shots and unanticipated tips. The Jets secured their first win without much difficulty (25:15).

“Mika really stepped up for sure for being a setter. And we just threw her in that position at the last minute and that was really amazing. She was the most impressive player for me on the JV,” said Coach Jolly.

For the second set, Coach Jolly changed up the starting six to test different player combinations. The teams traded points through several rallies as both sides adjusted to the new lineup. Blocking off the on-court chaos, sophomore Zoe Lee delivered crisp serves that disrupted Warriors’ offensive plays.

But repeated serve-receive errors from the Jets forced the coach to call a time out. The break gave the girls a breather and helped them recalibrate their mental game. When they stepped back on the court, the team quickly reset after their mistakes and soared ahead with consistent hits. The set concluded with a 12-point-margin (25:13) and yielded junior varsity their first win of the season.

Fueled from JV’s strong finish, varsity took the court determined to bring another victory. Coach Jolly named starters setter Leewen Wang (1) as captain, opposite hitter Victoria Kang (10), middle blockers Bonnie Kim (18) and Minju Koo (99), outside hitters Yul Sakong (29) and Jayden Hayward (15) and libero Agnew Kim (6) to kick off the first set.

In addition to the pressure of a best-out-of-five match, the Jets’ history of losing streaks against DMHS added another layer of tension. With the season opener taking place on their home court, varsity entered the court determined to break that pattern.

Despite their worries, the first two sets unfolded in DIS’s favor. The Jets’ precise and powerful serves dismantled the opponent’s formation. Moreover, middles and left-sides raked in points through a clean chemistry with setter Wang. The Jets took both sets with ease, with scores 25:18 and 25:17.

The challenge kicked in during the third set. The Warriors’ unexpectedly strong serves began to disrupt the Jets’ defensive positioning. As the opponent trailed from close behind, the squad adjusted their serve receive positions according to Coach Jolly’s instructions. Soon, consistent receives and key attacks from opposite hitter Sakong and middle blocker Koo allowed the Jets to quickly catch up. The match ended with another win for DIS (25:15).

The game wrapped up 3-0, marking a first-ever win for varsity. “Overall, it was one of the best games compared to the games we played last year and the year before, because we never beat DMHS, but this year we were able to. Although we only had two tryout practices, we really had a good overall team performance and energy,” Captain Leewen Wang said.

Despite rotational changes in each set, the squad carried on a steady rhythm and maintained consistent plays throughout the day. Along with the strong chemistry within the crew, the players’ individual strengths stood out, which reflected the extra hours spent to sharpen their skills during Saturday practices.

Coach Jolly highlighted a few exceptional performers of the day. “I was really impressed with Minju because she came up as a freshman and was able to be aggressive and had confidence. We could see it come through in a game situation. Jayden Hayward was really consistent throughout all the games, just at least putting the ball on the court. And Victoria– as the right-side player- was able to step in for the setter, put in her serves, and picked up a lot of stuff that was on the floor,” she said.

With a successful first friendly behind them, the Jets now aim for the podium at the upcoming Korea International Schools Activities Conference (KISAC) held on Oct. 22-24. “This year, we have a very excellent, strong group of girls and we have a very good chance to win SKAIS and also in KISAC. If we continue to keep working hard, we’re going to have a super successful season,” Coach Jolly said.

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