Submitted photo – The Jacoby Creek eighth-grade volleyball team went undefeated in league play for the second straight season.

By Ray Hamill — The Jacoby Creek Panthers had another season to remember on the volleyball court, with the school’s eighth graders winning a second straight Bay League title.

And they did it with another perfect run through league play after also going undefeated a year ago as seventh graders.

But that’s not the only thing that impressed about these determined young girls, who were ready to go from the first day of practice and never relented.

“They gave it their all every time in practice, and they were very respectful,” said head coach Kali Zanotti, who is in her third year as coach of the team. “Overall, this was the best group I’ve had.”

As you would expect from a team that went undefeated in league, there were several standouts, most notably team captains Kamplyn Mohrmann, Alysse Gildea and Cadence Fitzmaurice.

The talented and hard-working trio were a force on the court every game and they helped set the tone for their teammates, leading the way in kills and serving almost every game.

“Every single game they would give it their all,” the head coach said of her captains. “They all hit strong and they improved tremendously from last last year. It was like three different players out there.”

Cassidy O’Dowd, Mielle Jaster, Galena Goebel, Koko Dedini, Hazel Maxwell, Nova Garwood and Vaiana Vainuku rounded out the 10-player roster and each also made big contributions on the path to success.

However, it didn’t all come easy for the young Panthers, who had to battle every game and showed tremendous resiliency in coming from behind on several occasions, earning a reputation as a “comeback team.”

And they did that while working closely together out on the court.

“They worked really well on communicating and working together as a team,” Zanotti said. “It was more like a family. They all really got along together and it showed on the court.”

The coach believes all of the players have a bright future in the sport after showing a lot of improvement this fall.

“It was like watching a completely different team from last year with their improvement,” she said. “And I think all of them are ready for Arcata High or whatever high school they go to and the high school game.”