Scotts Valley senior Hayden Smith made sure they were fully energized going into Tuesday night’s Central Coast Section postseason opener.
The standout outside hitter finished with 16 kills, eight digs and one block to help the top-seeded Falcons sweep No. 8 Half Moon Bay in three sets 25-19, 25-20 and 27-25 in the Division IV quarterfinals.
“Energy was really key tonight,” Smith said. “We just needed everyone to be really excited and want to win this one for sure.”
Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League regular season champion Scotts Valley rebounded following a stunning loss to Aptos in the league’s end-of-season tournament on Oct. 28.
“As much as it is a bummer to lose, I think it was a great wake-up call for us heading into CCS,” said Scotts Valley head coach Mikayla Fish. “This postseason, nothing’s guaranteed, and if we want to be here, then we have to keep working hard.”
Scotts Valley (22-5, 11-1) will host No. 5 Harker (14-11, 6-6) out of the West Bay Athletic League Foothill Division on Thursday at 7pm.
“We’re gonna come firing every time, and we’re going to try and bring as much heat and energy to the core as possible,” Scotts Valley senior Harlan Hennager said.
Hennager finished with three kills and six blocks, assisting the Falcon defense shut down HMB’s outside hitters.
“Blocking is a really hard thing to do, and sometimes you’re on or you’re really off,” Fish said. “Tonight [Hennager] was really on. She had some textbook blocks for us, and that gives us the most energy imaginable.”
Fish admitted they’ve been notorious for starting slow, but that wasn’t the case Tuesday night.
The Falcons soared their way to win the opening set, and continued to push the pedal to the metal in the second.
“I think the secret to that for us is just making sure that they’re having fun in the beginning of our warm ups and making sure we’re listening to fun music, really keeping them loose,” Fish said.
However, the Falcons may have gotten a little too complacent after they jumped out to a six-point lead to begin the third set.
The Cougars clawed their way back to take a 25-24 lead, nearly forcing a fourth set.
“Sometimes we get too excited, and we don’t focus on the game ahead of us,” Hennager said. “I think we just got really excited, and then we kind of brought it back down to earth.”
Senior outside hitter Rylee Giesen had six aces, nine kills, nine digs and three blocks, while senior middle blocker Makayla McDonnell added seven kills and three blocks.
Senior opposite Aila Papadopoulos tallied seven kills and 10 digs, while junior Shino Hashiguchi-Rosoff had a breakout game in her first time at the libero position by compiling 17 digs and a pair of aces.
“I love how she just throws her body at every ball,” Smith said. “She’s really focused on getting stuff up. And we really appreciate that kind of ‘nothing hits the floor’ mentality.”
Scotts Valley earned the SCCAL regular season championship with an 11-1 record in league play for the 2025 fall campaign. Smith, a four-year starter on varsity, had never been this close to reaching a league title.
“I’m so glad it was this year,” she said. “This is really, really special for me. And especially with this team because it’s my senior year, it just feels amazing.”
Hennager added, “And the fact that all of us seniors get to leave with a legacy on our shoulders is pretty cool.”
Hennager mentioned this same group has been together for the past three years, which made it easier for them to play as a single unit.
“We all knew the drill, and we just got stronger and more cohesive,” she said. “I think that’s what made us so strong.”
There are plenty of expectations for Scotts Valley to reach the D-IV finals, yet Fish also wants to remind the players there’s still a ton of work remaining in order to reach that point.
“Just because we’re the No. 1 seed doesn’t mean we’re guaranteed to make it to the finals,” she said. “It’s just really staying focused on each match at a time.”
