Womens volleyball team is back
By Hector Trujillo
Despite starting off the season with a shutout road loss to San Dieguito Academy on Aug. 23, the Scripps Ranch High School (SRHS) womens volleyball team was able to regain its footing by beating Vista High School in dramatic fashion 3-2 at home on Aug. 29.
The Lady Falcons followed up that win with a dominant 3-1 victory at Granite Hills High School on Aug. 31 before falling to Academy of Our Lady of Peace on Sept. 1.
“I’m really excited to have a couple of returning seniors along with a lot of new young talent on the team,” said head coach Roni Hooper. “We’re really going to focus this year on being competitive and having good ball control.”
The three captains for this season’s squad are senior middle blocker Audrey Hilliard along with senior libero Lauren Peranignian and sophomore middle blocker Bryce Leatherwood who are playing alongside six sophomores, six juniors and a senior.
“We’re really excited to have a group together for a couple of more years,” Hooper said. “We’re in the Eastern League this year but still looking to be very competitive.”
Prior to becoming head coach in 2015, Hooper was the assistant under Ronni Olsen for five years. She also played for Olsen and was a Lady Falcon herself, winning back to back CIF championships in 2003 and 2004.
As part of this season’s schedule, SRHS will be hosting the 30th annual Scripps Ranch Volleyball Tournament on Sept. 22 and 23.
The Lady Falcons will play a total of 23 matches this season which includes a separate tournament appearance on Oct. 13 and 14 with league competition starting on Sept. 26 at home versus Mission Bay High School. Scripps Ranch will follow up that game with a road match against Patrick Henry High School on Sept. 28 and return home to take on Coronado on Oct. 3. The Lady Falcons will then travel to El Cajon on Oct. 5 and take on Christian High School for the second time this season before facing Clairemont at home on Oct. 10 and Mission Bay on the road on Oct. 12. Scripps Ranch will close out the regular season with a home match against Patrick Henry on Oct. 17 followed by a road game versus Coronado on Oct. 19.
