The Boys Varsity Beach Volleyball Team is looking to compete in the Open Division playoffs as they play against tough schools and put in hard work this 2018 season.

   “We have many returning players who are very strong,” said Head Coach Brooke Choi. “We want to have a strong success rate as well as have an open round finish,” added Choi.

   “I think we have a good shot at winning CIF this year,” said Senior Colin Ruthenberg. The team is 7-1 so far this season, as they have played against some challenging teams. They are competing in the same League as Mission Bay High and Cathedral Catholic High. Ruthenberg stated that overall, their league is very competitive.

   The team has been working hard at practice. Whether it is with the team or their partners, the players make sure not to take their practice time for granted. “My partner and I are working on blocking more, because that was an aspect that we were missing out on last year,” said Ruthenberg. “We have been working on playing as a team and communicating with our partners as much as possible,” said Senior Donovan Todorov.

   According to Choi, the team can still work on serving tougher, as your serve is the first attack against an opponent. They also plan to work on being more consistent and opening up their vision on the court.

     “I think we are just going to get better. We work really hard at practices, and we get really serious in games,” said Sophomore Cole Tessitore.         “Last year, we did pretty well. We made it to the first round of CIF, but then we lost. So we are hoping to move on past that this season,” said Ruthenberg.

   Good teamwork skills are required to be successful during matches. “Teamwork requires great communication and dedication by the pairs participating. Partners need to rely on each other and continually support and grow as the season progresses. Although they are two people, they need to be thinking the same thoughts simultaneously to be successful,” said Choi.

   “I think our team is working a lot better together this year,” mentioned Ruthenberg. The team only lost two seniors last year, making for a strong Senior Class this year. The team is hoping that this will set them up for success this season. “Everyone on the team is super supportive and nice, which is really comforting for me, considering I’m an underclassmen on varsity,” added Sophomore Cole Tessitore.

      Some of the team rivals include Point Loma High and Coronado High. Recently, the team beat Coronado, but it was a close victory, as it came down to the last match. It seems to always come down to the last match and the last points. When the two schools competed against each other, it came down to the third set of the last match, with UC High pulling out the win with a final score of 17-15.

   With the team working hard at practice and consistently winning games throughout the season, they will hopefully take their success to CIF games.