In the Bay Area, we are familiar with the idea of a Dynasty. We have seen the 49ers under Bill Walsh, the Giants win three World Series in five years, and more recently we have watched the Warriors build the best team in basketball, but many don’t realize that James Logan has its very own “dynasty” – the girls Volleyball team.
For the fourth year in a row, the James Logan Girls Volleyball team won the MVAL by sweeping American at the Eagles gym on Thursday, October 18th. They ended the regular season ranked #1 in Northern California by Sports Star Mag and garnered the #1 seed in the NCS tournament. It’s not going out on a limb to call this team a dynasty.
“Our program is currently one of the best in Northern California,” Coach Matthew Guzman said. “Our program now also competes at the top high school volleyball tournaments in the nation and plays well in those tournaments.”
Consider these numbers.
56 and 0. The team’s record in League games over the past four years. In fact, the Colts have only lost one set in the last 3 years.
136-22. The team’s overall record over the last four years, which includes playing some of the top teams in the nation that put multiple players a year into Division 1 universities.
17 and 2. The number of all-league selections and league MVPs in the last three years. Odds are both of those numbers will increase substantially when the 2018 honors are announced.
That kind of dominance is what makes girls volleyball arguably the greatest team Logan has seen in recent memory, but the excellence didn’t happen overnight.
“The program has changed dramatically since I first took over back in 2013. My first season coaching we were 3rd place in MVALs and finished with a 17-15 overall record after getting knocked out of the 2nd round of NCS,” Guzman said. “The program was at a much lower level competitively back then. Our practices and drills have greatly changed over the years which has played a key part in our improvement. It has taken a lot of hard work and dedication from everyone in our program to get us to the championship culture we have today.”
That hard work and dedication are apparent when the girls play, but there is still an element of true fun on the court. From the elaborately choreographed handshakes before each set to the hugs and smiles after a roof block or a quick surprise tip that has the team cheering; the team plays with a joy and sense of teamwork that is easy to appreciate. Playing together with one mind is at the heart of the team’s success according to Senior Captain Tuamafa Tuinauvai.
“Everyone on the court, communication-wise, would talk and help each other out, give each other advice, and also execute with passing, setting, and hitting,” Tuinauvai said. The team seems to play like that old cliche, “a well-oiled machine,” that came about from many hours spent together starting back in June.
“Usually we would practice for two or three hours” during the summer, Tuinauvai said. “The first hour we would probably do conditioning or lift weights and then the last two we would do drills and scrimmage each other.”
The hard work in the summer and early season matches against nationally ranked teams honed the girls play. They continued to learn and improve on their way to two undefeated first-place finishes in the top two tournaments in Northern California, the Christine Craft Memorial Invitational in Oak Ridge and the Stockton Classic.
“The best moment so far in the season has to be winning the tournament title at the Stockton Classic, Senior Captain Maxine Tuazon said. “The Stockton Classic has been regarded as one of, if not the best High School tournament in NorCal, and for us to win the whole thing was a great moment and achievement for our team.”
On the way to the Stockton Classic Championship, the girls swept Exeter in the semifinals and downed Bishop O’Dowd 25-23, 20-25, 15-8. However, it wasn’t easy.
“We started off really, really slow,” Tuinauvai said. “We had a lot of ups and downs, and there were moments where we could have lost. I think what brought us together was the very last game. It was against Bishop O’Dowd. They’re really, really good, and kind of woke us up because not everything is given; we have to work hard for it.”
Tuinauvai was chosen as the tournament MVP after leading the team to the title. In that final match against the O’Dowd Dragons, she recorded 16 kills and 12 digs over the three sets. It was quite an accomplishment for Tuinaavai, who stands tall at 5’10’’ with an impressive vertical jump. Although Tuinauvai is an accomplished athlete, in the world of high-level women’s high school volleyball she (and the rest of the Logan squad) is considered undersized.
”There is so much pressure on us, and everyone is always underestimating us because of our size,” Tuinauvai said. “We look like a JV team compared to the other teams because they are bigger and more experienced. So, like, we can’t be stronger or faster, of course, no matter how much training we do, but we can play smarter.”
On the court this season, the team appears to be three steps ahead of their opponents. There is constant communication between the players. They seem to know where each other will be, setting the ball from one side of the court to the other, being in the right spot for a double team block – these are all signs of a team playing smarter and at a higher level than most of their opponents.
“The level of play we face in the league and at the national tournaments are completely on opposite spectrums. With respect to the other teams in our league, they are just playing at a much lower level compared to the elite teams,” Guzman said. “At these high-level tournaments, we face teams that are top ranked in the nation with multiple division 1 committed players. For example, at the Durango Classic in Las Vegas, we held our own against national powerhouse Mater Dei (#3 in the nation), who has two starters committed to Stanford and a roster filled with mostly 6 foot or taller players.”
Moving up in class has benefitted the Colts, but the team knows that there is still farther to go on their journey.
“Last season we fell short in the NCS Finals and at the State Championships. We gained a lot of experience from all the championship games last season and we expect to perform at a higher level in the playoffs this year. So our ultimate goal this season is to win the NCS title and make it back to the state championships” Guzman said.
Come watch the volleyball team take the next step towards the state championship this Wednesday in the Pavilion against the #4 seed California.
