The Dublin High School Varsity Girls Volleyball team pulled off one of the biggest wins in the history of the program, coming from behind on the road to knock off this year’s East Bay Athletic League champions and the NCS Division I top-seeded Foothill Falcons in a marathon 5-set Quarterfinal match.
Dublin showed amazing resiliency by overcoming multiple deficits to come away with the victory. The 8th-seeded Gaels were down 2 sets to 1 and trailed in the 4th set 11-7 as the Falcons appeared on the verge of pulling away. Dublin then proceeded to score 9 of the next 12 points to take a 16-14 advantage en route to a 25-21 win to even the match at 2 sets apiece. Foothill took charge early in the 5th set, storming out to a seemingly insurmountable 8-2 lead before the Gaels slowly chipped away. Despite Dublin’s push, they still trailed 11-8, 13-11, and were facing match point trailing 14-13 before rallying for 3 straight points to come away with a 16-14 win.
The win is even more remarkable when considering that Foothill defeated Dublin twice during the regular season, including just 11 days prior in straight sets. However, Dublin gained confidence early by playing a nearly flawless first set which they won 25-21. Foothill bounced back in the 2nd set and won in a convincing manner 25-15. Despite Dublin leading for most of the 3rd set, Foothill evened the score at 16-16 and eventually overcome the Gaels to win it 25-22. The Falcons’ 2-1 advantage in sets and fast start to the 4th set seemed to give them control before Dublin’s late match heroics.
Rachel Grier and Katie Munch led the offensive charge and had significant kills and blocks throughout the match. Lauren Dang and Pallak Thapur helped set the table for the offense, while Dublin also benefitted by significant contributions both offensively and defensively from Nyla Helou, Madison Cheung, Brielle Rodrigues, and Alena Dinh.
For only the second time in school history, the Girls Volleyball team has advanced to the North Coast Section Semi-Finals where they will travel to face the 4th-seeded Amador Valley Dons on Wednesday, November 3rd at 7:00 p.m. The Gaels came up short in both of its matches against the Dons during the regular season, but similar its EBAL encounters with Foothill both losses were in close matches which gives Dublin confidence heading into what promises to be a great match. The winner between Dublin and Amador Valley will travel to face the winner of the Monte Vista/San Ramon Valley match on Saturday, November 6th for the NCS Division I title.
Regardless of Dublin’s outcome in the NCS Semifinals and/or Finals, the Gaels have secured a berth in the CIF Northern California Regional Tournament. This will be Dublin’s first ever appearance in the CIF NorCal bracket, which is quite an accomplishment for Coach Mike Bongay in just his second season at the helm of the volleyball program. In his first season that was shortened due to the pandemic, the Girls team finished 5-2 and the Boys team was undefeated at 8-0..
