The seniors didn’t want the season to end, the coaches didn’t want the season to end, so after a blowout first-set loss, Ripon Christian volleyball head coach Kayla Kootstra issued her team a challenge.
“I said ‘I’m not ready to be done, and if you’re not ready to be done, we’ve got to go out there and show it,’” she said.
The top-seeded Knights were determined to not let any rust from their nine-day layoff between their Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV semifinals loss to Christian Brothers and Thursday’s CIF Northern California Regional playoff Division IV match against No. 8 West Valley get the best of them.
They bounced back from just scoring 11 points in their opening-set loss to pulling out three straight wins, beating the visiting Eagles, 11-25, 25-12, 25-17, 25-13 to advance to the regional semifinals. They will host No. 5 Harbor of Santa Cruz Saturday at 6 p.m.
There is some history between the Knights and West Valley. Since 2022 they have played six times and Ripon Christian is 6-0. Three times they have met in regular season tournaments and three times the Knights ended the Eagles’ season in the NorCal tournament.
West Valley started the match hot, opening up a 10-point advantage that ballooned into an 18-6 advantage midway through the first set, forcing Kootstra to call her second timeout. The Knights temporarily answered, scoring three of the next four points, highlighted by back-to-back kills by Brynn Bohn and Morgan Schenk. But West Valley ended the set on a 6-2 run.
Bohn and Schenk were part of a balanced Knights attack, finishing with eight and six kills, respectively. Alyssa Hofman had seven and Haley Kootstra finished with five. Tatum Sonke’s 11 digs were a team-high and Lauren Mouw added 10.
The Knights flipped a switch in the second set.
Haley Kootstra had a block and back-to-back kills early, followed by an ace by Paige Van Hofwegen as Ripon Christian took a 14-8 lead.
“Big plays bring big energy,” Kootstra said. “A couple of blocks, a couple of good kills and all of a sudden it turns the momentum around and that’s what we needed to carry it through the rest of the match.”
Two of Van Hofwegen’s team-high nine kills came immediately following a timeout. Bohn added a kill as Ripon Christian opened a 20-12 lead. Alanna Blanco contributed an ace and Haley Kootstra ended the set with a block as the Knights evened the match.
“I didn’t really doubt that we were going to lose the game because I have faith in my team and we just needed to shake off those nerves,” Bohn said. “We never doubted each other … we have each other’s backs. So that’s what’s most important and that’s why we were able to come back.”
The Knights were in control the rest of the match, opening a 14-9 lead in the third set and finishing the frame with a 5-1 run. They started the fourth frame with a 7-1 advantage, opened a 20-9 lead and coasted to victory.
“I was frustrated, I was wishing it didn’t happen, but I was looking for how we responded,” Kootstra said of her mindset after the first set. “It felt like nothing could go right for us in that first set, and you can either roll over and let them take it or you can respond. And I thought our girls responded really well.”
As the top seed, the Knights play all of their matches at home. That’s a big difference from when they played every match on the road in 2023 when they won a D-III state title as the No. 13 seed. Last season, Ripon Christian traveled to Vallejo for a second-round D-IV regionals match against St. Patrick-St. Vincent.
“It’s really exciting to have these home games, especially for senior year,” Bohn said. “It’s just fun because our student section is so energetic and fun, and it brings the energy up and makes it much more fun.”
The Knights next host fifth-seeded Harbor on Saturday at 6 p.m. Harbor is a team they have played just once in the past 20 years, a 2-0 tournament sweep in 2013. The Pirates beat Scotts Valley in five sets for the Central Coast Section D-IV crown and beat East Nicolaus and Durham in four and five sets, respectively, to get to the regional semifinals.
Stanislaus District second-round scores
Division V
No. 3 Escalon 3, No. 6 Kelseyville 2: Escalon won the first set but fell in the second and third frames, needing to sweep the rest of the match to keep its season alive. With their backs against the wall, the Cougars won the fourth and decisive fifth sets to advance the Northern California Regional Semifinal in Hilmar on Saturday.
No. 2 Hilmar 3, No. 7 Palma 0: The Yellowjackets swept their second straight NorCal Regional match this season, beating visiting Palma of Salinas 25-22, 25-13, 25-19 to advance for the second straight season. Hilmar hosts No. 3 Escalon Saturday night in an all-Trans-Valley League Regional Semifinals match at 6 p.m.
Division VI
No. 1 Big Valley Christian 3, No. 8 Laytonville 0: The Lions played their first-round matchup against visiting Laytonville Wednesday and showed no signs of fatigue after what has already been a long season. Big Valley Christian won 25-7, 25-7, 25-7 to secure a spot in Saturday’s regional semifinals, where they play four-seed Etna. Etna beat San Francisco Waldorf 3-1.
Stanislaus District NorCal Semifinals
Saturday Nov. 15
Division IV
No. 5 Harbor at No. 1 Ripon Christian, 6 p.m.
Division V
No. 3 Escalon at No. 2 Hilmar, 6 p.m.
Division VI
No. 4 Etna at No. 1 Big Valley Christian, 5 p.m.