Golden Valley gives seniors a special send-off after claiming the CCC championship.
The stage was set for a memorable night. There was a large, boisterous crowd that amped up the energy level in Cougar Arena as the Cougars hosted El Capitan in the final regular season match with the Central California Conference championship up for grabs.
All day, Golden Valley sophomore Jake Green had been telling his teammates how he wanted to send his seniors out with a title he came through on his promise, delivering a team high 15 kills to help lead the Cougars to a 25-22, 25-19, 26-24 victory over the Gauchos to win the CCC championship.
The student section rushed the floor to celebrate with the players after the game-winning point. It was an emotional victory on senior night. “This one hits really hard for me.,” said Golden Valley coach Vong Her, whose team improved to 26-14 overall and 9-1 in the CCC. “This group of seniors, I’ve had them since eighth grade. I’ve grown up with them, I came into the program with them and we’ve all got to see each other grow. It really hits home to me. When they leave, it’s really going to hurt.”
Green said he’d been thinking about the match all day and how bad he wanted to win for his teammates. “It’s such a special feeling,” he said. “The whole day I was talking to my seniors and I told them I’m going to do it for you guys. We’re going to win this for you so it’s really special to come out here and do that. I just love my seniors. I’m so sad they’re leaving but we have a CCC title.”
The Cougars avenged their only CCC loss of the season when they let a 2-0 lead slip away in a 3-2 loss to El Capitan in the first matchup. Golden Valley then won its next four CCC matches to set up their shot at the conference title against the Gauchos on their home court in the season finale.
The Cougars were up for the challenge as they received contributions up and down the roster. Joshua Chao chipped in with eight kills in the middle. Damon Saechao and Richard Saechaso both added seven kills and Chai Her delivered six kills. Luis Ortiz and Marc Her shared the setting duties and finished with 18 and 17 assists, respectively.
Richard Saechao also moved to the middle and was matched up with El Capitan star Tyler McCreary. “The key was Richard and Jake,” Vong Her said. “Richard is usually our outside hitter, but I moved him to the middle and that was a huge assignment because I told him I need you to lock up the middle and I need you to slow down Tyler. Jake is probably the best offensive player in the league and he’s only a sophomore and he’s only getting better.”
Her took his team outside after the match to thank them and congratulate them on the championship. It was an emotional meeting as many of the players were wiping away tears as they returned to the gym. Everyone wanted to win for their seniors Jayden Thao, Chao, Chai Her, Marc Her, Ortiz, Emmanuel Alcala-Nopales and Damon Saechao.
“It was really big for me because it’s my last year playing,” Chao said.”I love volleyball and I put my whole heart into it. Everyone here on the court is my friend outside of school. We have a really deep connection.”
It was the Cougars fifth CCC championship in program history. Both teams will now prepare for the Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs which begin next week. “We just have to keep the energy and keep the positive energy going,” Chao said.
