High school volleyball roundup: Petaluma knocks off crosstown rival Casa

Crosstown rivals Casa Grande and Petaluma faced off in a nonleague volleyball match Tuesday night with the Trojans defending their home court with a straight set victory.

The scores were 25-19, 25-18 and 25-12.

Sianna DeCarli led the Petaluma attack with 10 kills while Julianna Bertolucci dished out 23 assists.

Coach Ryan Hughes liked what he saw and believes the future is bright.

“We'll contend for the SCL title,” he said. “I guarantee that. We have a good team and hopefully this will be the year we take it all.”

The Trojans are 1-1 having lost to Montgomery in their opener. Casa is off to an 0-2 start but coach Jill Fahy is expecting improvement.

“We're definitely young,” she said. “In the past week, the girls have progressed quickly and we're looking forward to continued improvement.”

Aluna Rico was impressive against Petaluma with 13 digs. Ani Hanakewa had seven assists and Kylie Brandt connected on five kills.

SANTA ROSA 3, HEALDSBURG 2

At Healdsburg, the Panthers lost the first two games before rallying to win the match.

The scores were 17-25, 22-25, 25-10, 25-14 and 15-12.

What turned the match around?

“The girls began trusting each other,” coach Amber Oden said.

“Once that happened, they began having fun and played much better.

“They finally figured things out. It was great sitting back and watching that.”

Makenzie Oden led the way with 19 assists and six kills while Sophia Oden had 14 assists and four kills.

Luisa Ciassa also played a key role as she had four kills, four blocks and two aces.

This was the first of three consecutive away matches for the Panthers.

They play at Napa Wednesday and San Marin on Thursday.

WINDSOR 3, ANALY 1

At Sebastopol, Allison Post threw down 19 kills and also came up with 18 digs as the Jaguars won a road match.

The scores were 25-20, 25-19, 22-25 and 25-23.

Also contributing to the Windsor victory were Bridget Aikawa (29 assists), Destiny Clark (11 kills) and Elena Dyer (six blocks).

“We served really well and played great defense,” Windsor coach Rich Schwarz said. “It's always difficult to beat Analy in their gym.

“We still have some wrinkles we have to fix, but this win feels good.”

For the Tigers, Claire Rudderow led the attack with 12 kills. Tori Fitzpatrick was credited with 18 digs.

UKIAH 3, PINER 0

At Piner, the Wildcats began their season on a winning note and took the match 25-18, 25-19 and 25-14.

Emily Eaton led the way with nine kills while Gabriella Peterson had seven put-aways. Valentina Evans contributed six kills and three aces.

With its productive front line, Ukiah figures to be in the upper echelon of the North Bay League when conference play begins in mid-September.

Coach Ori Polkinghorne said expectations are high.

“The girls are scrappy and can really play,” he said. “Eaton is a senior and is our hammer. Petersen is a junior and is also a big hitter. Evans is only a sophomore, but she's going to make a good impression this season.”

EL MOLINO 3, MIDDLETOWN 0

At Forestville, Kassidy Sani served eight aces as the Lions prevailed 25-13, 25-13 and 25-20.

El Molino is off to one of the best starts in school history with a 3-1 record.

The Lions have gotten excellent play from freshmen Kassidy Sani and Sasha Senal.

Against Middletown, Sani had eight aces and 23 assists while Senal was credited with seven kills.

Senior Torrie Boles was all over the court and wound up with 25 digs.