Win by two. One more point and we win. Do it for Londonderry. Win this game for Mack Plaque. Do it for your team.
These thoughts rush through my head as I look at the score board. It’s 25-24.
My teammate, Sarah Joe, is serving the ball. This is Sarah’s senior night, so she is already hyped up.
The referee blows his whistle, and I watch as Sarah takes three steps then throws the ball in the air.
The ball travels to the other side of the court, where it’s going directly to another player. It bounces off of her arms and on to the ground.
We did it.
We all scream and run into the middle of the court.
Tears flowing our down faces, sweat dripping off our bodies. We just won.
All of the hours practicing, learning, and being together as a team paid off, and we were finally able to celebrate.
That game proved that we can persevere since the beginning of the match didn’t go as planned.
In volleyball, the game is won by winning best 3 out of 5. We lost the first set 17-25, which was a major setback for us. We continued to push our hardest into the next set, where we won 25-16. The third set was tough, but we gave it all we had and won 25-20.
The final set was what counted. We started with a lead, but Pinkerton caught up. We pushed through that set and worked harder than we had ever worked.
This feeling will never go away. It still feels unreal that we won.
The last time the volleyball team won this game against Pinkerton was in 2010. This statistic was in our minds the entire game.
We wanted to end this drought, and prove to ourselves and our peers that we can win.
I don’t think some understand how hard this game was for us. We felt that we had everything working against us.
Winning this game meant a lot to the team; it gave us the confidence we needed. It showed us that we are capable of winning and to never doubt ourselves from what other people say.
I am so proud of my team for pushing through every obstacle that we were put through during that game. We persevered and fought hard for that win. We showed everyone that we can and will win.
I hope this win can change the course of Londonderry volleyball forever. We should get the recognition we deserve. After all, the volleyball team hasn’t won this game in 10 years.
