Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com

By Ray Hamill — Consistency is the common denominator among this week’s award winners.

Few local teams have been as consistent as Del Norte has been on the volleyball court in recent years, and the Warriors are showing no signs of slowing down.

This year’s team is off to a flying start and will be very difficult to stop in the Big 5, and that makes the Warriors our Team of the Week, an award sponsored as always by College of the Redwoods Athletics.

Head coach Meagan Curtis and her players are 2-0 in the Big 5 and 10-1 overall, and they have yet to drop a set in league play.

Remarkably the Del Norte girls have not dropped a set in any of their 10 wins and their only loss came against a Foothill team that is ranked No. 3 in the Northern Section.

Our Athlete of the Week, meanwhile, is an Arcata Tiger.

Junior Izaiah Grosveld has been playing a key role for the Arcata boys soccer team and his importance to the team was evident this week.

Grosveld returned to the lineup on Wednesday after missing the past couple of games through injury and he had an immediate impact on his return.

The Olympic Development Program player was involved in all three goals for the Tigers, who rallied from a pair of two-goal deficits to pull out a 3-3 tie with rival Eureka.

“He’s by far the best player in league and with him we’re very, very dangerous,” Arcata head coach John Davidson said of Grosveld. “He really has the ability to bring other players into the game.”

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

Izaiah Grosveld

Arcata Soccer, Junior

Grosveld scored twice and set up teammate Cruz Aguilar Miner for the tying goal late in Wednesday’s game. 

Check out one of Grosveld’s goals and his assist above …

The junior playmaker has established himself as one of the top players in the H-DNL right now and appears to be embracing the role as a team leader for the Tigers.

For more on his big week, see Thrills, surprises keep coming in the H-DNL …

TEAM OF THE WEEK

Del Norte Volleyball

The Warriors look determined to defend the Big 5 championship they won a year ago, and they’re on course to be even more dominant.

In 2022, they won all eight Big 5 games while dropping just four sets in league play.

The began the defense of their league title with an impressive three-sets win at Arcata in what was expected to be their toughest match in league play.

The team includes reigning Big 5 MVP McKenna Curtis and nine returning players from last year’s championship team, as well a coaching staff as good as any in the H-DNL, in any sport.

The Warriors are ranked No. 4 in North Coast Section Division 4, according to MaxPreps.

For more on their big week, see Warriors, Loggers win their league openers …