Varsity volleyball defeated Rowland 3-0 in a home game Wednesday, Sept. 14, making their league score 4-1.

Walnut began their first set with a point after an attempted attack from Rowland went out of bounds. Although the Mustangs held the lead at the beginning, Rowland quickly started to catch up shortly after, making the score a close 23-22. However, a failed serve from Rowland led Walnut to their first win with the score being 25-22.

“The first set was a little rocky for all of us. I thought I didn’t play too well or to the best of my abilities,” outside hitter senior Ashley Li said. “Even though we won the set, it felt like we lost. It was too close.”

During the second set, Walnut started and led with two points. Throughout the game, the Mustangs continued to extend their lead with Rowland unable to match their score. The set was won after Li made several consistent spikes, ending with a score of 25-10.

“Our second we had a much cleaner game. The first set we were making a lot of mistakes which was why I think the other team was able to make so many points,” Li said. “But for the second set, we made less mistakes and didn’t let [Rowland] go on as many runs. I think that was why we were able to keep their score lower.”

The third set began with Rowland serving. They continued to lead for the first half of the game until Walnut caught up after continuous and successful spikes from right side sophomore Isabel Valle and Li. Rowland also made some attack errors, bringing the score to a tie of 13-13. Both teams continued to carry a close score until outside hitter sophomore Caylin Caballero won the final point with a score of 25-21.

“It was a little nerve-wracking when [Rowland] was in the lead but it’s easy to come back with a team,” libero senior Angelina Rodriguez said. “It’s amazing supporting each other and fighting together.”