On Tuesday, Nov. 8, the Varsity Volleyball team competed against the Lake Travis Cavaliers for the round three regional quarterfinals title. Cheers and thumps from the packed stands and teams ricocheted off the walls, creating a lively environment with everyone on their toes.

Both teams started strong for the first set. Setter Rachel Cai led the team with assists, with 17 total. A dump set by Cai helped the team inch further up in points. Julia Hopkins ‘24 and Alex Kriz ‘23 had seven and six kills, respectively. It was clear that the Cavaliers watched lots of Westwood film before the game as they focused on hits away from libero Lola Fernandez ‘23. Although this tactic worked many times, Fernandez still attempted several digs and contributed to the ball staying in play. The Warriors won the first set 26-24.

After switching sides, the second set began. The scores slowly increased, with several rallies and points scored on both sides. Lake Travis was slowly inching ahead by no more than four points during the set. However, with several consistent kills by the Cavaliers, Lake Travis won the second set 25-20.

During the third set, the Warriors took notice of the Cavaliers’ serve-receive issues and committed to several hits. Hopkins led with kills, successfully hitting 16 total. Through consistent passing and communication skills, Westwood distanced themselves from the Cavaliers on the scoreboard. At 24-17, Cai attempted a dump set and ended the set with another Warrior win.

The Cavaliers were eager to pull off the fourth-set win to stay in the game. Several rallies created more tension on the court as no one knew how the set would end. However, the Cavaliers soon scored more points, gaining momentum with each point. Lake Travis won the fourth set 25-19, continuing the game for the fifth and final set.

At this point, there seemed to be a win-loss pattern for the Warriors. The teams anxiously stood on the court, waiting for the set to begin. Because it was the fifth set, whoever reached 15 points first would win the game. Both teams made solid, high passes, followed by strong hits. The Cavaliers won the final set 15-11, with a hit into the Warriors’ back right corner. The students and players of Lake Travis rushed onto the court to celebrate.

“It was a really fun game,” Fernandez said. “A lot of students came which was really nice, and it was my favorite [game] of the season even though we lost. The energy was through the roof and Lake Travis was such a competitive team which made playing against them really fun.”

Although this marked the end of the season for the Warriors, there was still much to be proud of. Westwood now has a new year to add to the volleyball banner in the big gym for the district and area championships. A strong, senior-led team faced a bittersweet goodbye as many were leaving a sport they had spent several hours practicing in. However, this was not the end of all of the seniors’ volleyball careers, as three girls will be moving on to play college volleyball next year. The rest of the team will begin their offseason in the coming weeks to prepare for their 2023 season.