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Merced Union High School District

A Relevant Education For All

October 27, 2026

Merced serves up postseason breakthrough with play-in victory

A merced player hitting the volleyball over the net while the other team tries to block

Three photo collage of merced volleyball players setting on the left, bumping in the middle and spiking on the right

The Merced High girls volleyball team extended their season at least one more day with a victory over Grace Davis in a Sac-Joaquin Section Division II play-in match on Monday night at Merced High. The Bears outlasted the Spartans 25-16, 25-11, 27-25, 25-23 to clair their first postseason victory since 2018

 

The Bears have a quick turnaround as the No. 16 seed as they travel to No. 1 Saint Francis for a first-round playoff match tonight at 6 p.m. “I think it’s amazing because we haven’t had the privilege of playing in the playoffs,” said junior Kinley Czirban. “This has been a really fun year, especially with a new coach. He’s put a lot of effort into us.”

 

The Bears (16-10) came out strong against the Spartans in the first two games. Merced used a 7-0 run midway through the first game to open up a 19-13 lead. Gabriella Randol and Morgan Wilson picked up kills during the run and Kasalyn Moua added one of her aces. 

 

Merced then used an 11-1 run in the second game to seize control with a 19-7 lead. Moua recorded three kills and an ace to help the Bears create some separation from Davis. “Our ball placement was there, our defense on the outside was definitely there and our blocks were there in the middle,” said Bears coach Chittawat Her. “Tomorrow is definitely going to be very hard playing against the top seed in Division II, but it feels great because the girls didn’t get to go to the playoffs last year.”

 

The Bears are one of three teams advancing to the playoffs. Golden Valley, which tied Merced for second place in the Central California Conference, lost 3-0 to Sierra in a Division II play-in match on Monday night. El Capitan (27-7) is the No. 8 seed in Division II after winning its sixth consecutive CCC championship and will host No. 9 Christian Brothers tonight. Buhach Colony is the No. 12 seed in Division III and will travel to No. 5 Yuba City.

 

After controlling the first two games, Merced couldn’t close out the Spartans in the third game. Davis built an 18-14 lead The Bears came back to lead 20-18 with the help of a kill and a block by Czirban. However, the Spartans made enough plays down the stretch to send the match to a fourth game. “Sometimes we get too comfortable and we just have to get back into it,” Czirban said. 

 

The Spartans climbed back from a 19-14 deficit in the fourth game to cut Merced’s lead to 24-23, but the Bears were able to close out the game and the match to qualify for the playoffs. 

 

Randol led the way with 12 kills and Moua finished with 11 kills. Nadalyn Moua recorded 23 assists and Aliyah Solis recorded 17 digs.

 

Merced knows it has a tall order with the top seed in the first round. “I think we just need to try our best, play our hardest and be happy with whatever happens,” Czirban said.

 

Shawn Jansen is the MUHSD Program Manager Digital Media. He can be reached at Sjansen@muhsd.org.