West Ranch girls’ volleyball is seeking its first Foothill League title since 2023, and following a win over Saugus, the Wildcats are one step closer.
The Wildcats swept Saugus in straight sets, 28-26, 25-13, 25-12, and secured the team’s ninth straight Foothill League win.
It needs one more league win for this season’s title.
“We knew Saugus was going to be our biggest challenge this season,” West Ranch head coach Jamey Ker said. “So, to be able to get them twice and get past that hurdle feels good.”
Last season, Saugus (28-7, 8-2) claimed the Foothill League title with an undefeated record in league play, a feat that West Ranch (14-3, 9-0) is attempting to complete.
The Wildcats this season have yet to drop a set to their opposition, an accomplishment that continues to show the dominance of the team as the season enters the final few games.
And in the win over Saugus, they kept that streak alive, but not without some push from the Centurions.
In the first set, both teams were tied at 10 apiece following a Taylor Stires kill. But the Centurions extended their lead to 15-12 following mistakes from West Ranch.
The Centurions kept West Ranch at bay for most of the set and led the Wildcats, 22-18, following another kill from Stires.
Down four, the Wildcats rallied back to tie the set at 22 apiece after a hitting error from Saugus.
The Wildcats took the lead back following back-to-back offensive errors from the Centurions and found themselves at a set point.
But before West Ranch could clinch the set, the Centurions tied the set at 25 apiece after a timely kill from Victoria Vacas.
The teams exchanged shots and were tied at 26, but following back-to-back kills from West Ranch, the Wildcats closed out the first set with a win after an offensive error from Saugus.
After the game, Ker credited the timeout he called in the first set’s final sequence to slow the game down and give his team a chance to get back in rhythm.
“I think we were just kind of out of rhythm and were kind of disjointed a bit through that entire first set,” Ker said. “And you can either complain and whine but I think the best thing we could have done was just kind of lock back in and we focus on supporting each other and being energetic and not clamming up, and I think it was the really big focus. So, the fact that we were able to come out and play with energy and excitement is what ultimately pulled it through for us.”
In the second set, despite the teams being tied at five apiece, the Wildcats went on an 11-1 scoring run and led the Centurions 16-6.
West Ranch closed out the set with another offensive rally from its players and kept that momentum into the third set to complete the sweep.
“I think ultimately the switch we made at the end of the first set is what carried over into sets two and three,” Ker said. “We just got ourselves back into our normal flow, and you do that with energy and attitude. Ultimately, putting the energy out physically and emotionally is something that is always going to make your players play better and more clean volleyball.”
With the win, West Ranch now needs either a win over Hart or a Saugus loss to clinch the Foothill League title.
Despite the possibilities, all that Ker is focusing on is how his team can perform and execute in the final stretch of game that is left.
“The mindset is to always show up, compete, be there for each other and that’s really it,” Ker said. “If we can show up, we can compete and we’d be there for each other, it’s going to be hard to touch us.”
West Ranch was set to play Wednesday night at home with the chance to clinch the title in front of their home fans, hosting Hart with the game set to begin at 5 p.m.
As for Saugus, the Centurions will look to close out the season strong on Tuesday at Hart.
