They may be small in numbers, but that didn’t prevent the Ferndale Wildcats from recording one of the upsets of the season on Thursday night.
The Cats welcomed Pacific League powerhouse Del Norte to Ferndale High for a non-league volleyball showdown and won in four sets, 25-20, 20-25, 25-12, 25-23.
The Ferndale players came out focused and ready to go.
“It was pretty awesome with such a tiny team,” said Ferndale coach SK Montiel Clark, who has just 13 players on the varsity and JV teams combined. “I think the girls went in with a really strong mentality.
“We’ve been working a lot on staying focused throughout the game regardless of little mistakes.”
Several players stood out in the win, including sophomore Abagail Gossi, who led the team in kills and also had a big night at the service line.
Ki Giacomini also had a big night for the home team and led them in blocks, while Fallon Bullan led the way defensively from her libero position.
“Ki did excellent moving at the net,” the coach added. “And our libero Fallon was all over the place digging every ball.”
With the big win, the Wildcats improved to 5-4 on the young season as they continue to build momentum toward league play, which gets under way later in the month.
And it’s a group of players that seem to enjoy playing alongside each other.
“I like how much they like being a team,” the coach said. “The girls always come in excited to play and excited to be with each other. I feel the camaraderie is top tier this year.”
No stats were immediately available for the Warriors.
The Ferndale girls will be back in action on Friday night when host Etna at 6 p.m.
They open league play at home to South Fork on Sept. 22.
