With the possibility of playoffs looming, the Bear Cubs fell to a hard-fought loss to No. 1 ranked San Joaquin Delta at Haehl Pavilion on Friday.
The Bear Cubs entered the match looking to bounce back after three straight losses, with their most recent defeat coming at the hands of Diablo Valley. Similarly, San Joaquin Delta looked to get back on track after a loss to Cosumnes River on Nov. 13.
Emotions were high before the match as the Bear Cubs’ six sophomores, Jaiden Brooner, Sierra Yates-Bruch, Sarah Thornton, Stephanie Melendez, Katie Brenninger and Kiana Walker were acknowledged and celebrated by their teammates and families for their time and contributions to the team during their two years.
Head coach Ally Sather spoke about the energy she got from her team before and during the match.
“A lot of excitement,” she said. “It’s an emotional match just knowing it’s our last home game. Just overall jittery energy to start the game with the sophomore celebration and our opportunity to acknowledge and appreciate our sophomores tonight.”
Despite the result, the Bear Cubs pushed hard and put up a brave display, forcing the sets to the wire in the latter stages. Offensively, Brenninger put up a team-high 13 kills and 33 total attempts, putting in work and testing the Delta defense. Alongside Brenninger, outside hitter Madison Shaw came up strong with four kills and 29 attempts.
SRJC put up a solid defensive display as well, with defensive specialist Jaiden Bronner scoring a team-high 19 digs. Brenninger and Melendez showed up closely with eight digs, followed closely by Yates-Bruch’s seven digs.
The Bear Cubs put up some strong blocks on the night as well, with setter/opposite Lily Comma, and Thornton leading the way with two block assists on the night, closely followed by Brenninger and Walker who each scored one.
Bronner spoke on the personality of the team and her emotions on sophomore night.
“There’s always somebody different but you know, we are all alive, we have a lot of similarities,” she said. “For one, we all love the school, so we play and it’s just a really bubbly group. I just love this group of people, especially newcomers, they’re amazing. I love them, they bring so much to this team and they’re gonna bring so much next year.”
The Bear Cubs concluded 5-11 in conference play and sit seventh in the Big 8. Their overall record stands at 13-16. Playoffs start on Saturday, Nov. 23 with Santa Rosa’s inclusion still unknown according to coach Sather. Looking further ahead, the 3C2A State Championship Tournament starts on Dec. 6 and runs to Dec. 8.
