With the sun glaring on the courts, energy was high as Buena’s beach volleyball team took on their cross-town rivals in their season closer, April 9, 2025. Even after putting up a good fight, Ventura High School won the match overall, ending with a 5-1 match loss for Buena.
Starting the game, senior Kayla Templin and junior Carrie Cocain went up against the Cougars. Excited for her last game, Templin made multiple great hits over the net and gained some points for the Bulldogs.
“Since it was my last game ever with Buena, I was really focused on just bringing the energy and keeping a positive attitude and mindset,” Templin said.
While this was a promising start, Ventura started to climb the scoreboard fast, leaving very little space for Buena to score. On each side of the court, athletes consistently showed high amounts of effort and determination, but tricky plays from Ventura ultimately ended in a loss for Buena in both sets by over 15 points each.
“We have a hard time executing against harder teams, like Ventura,” Cocain said. “Normally they are faster and can read the ball better, which is something we have worked on improving this season.”
At the same time on the second court, sophomore Kenna Wilson and senior Janelle Tellez battled Ventura. The Cougars scored fast, gaining a majority of the first four points before a medical timeout was called for Buena due to the heat.
“I was told we should forfeit, but we did not,” Wilson said. “We did not play to our full potential because of [the heat], but it was a great game with [Tellez].”
The duo still fought a tough fight, even with the sun beating down on them, and shined through their communication during the game. With great saves and last minute decisions, the match became nearly back and forth.
“Communication is huge,” Wilson said. “Not only talking with your partner, but also mental communication and connection is really important.”
Buena ended up stuck with few points as Ventura soared up the board, and the Bulldogs’ morale dropped. Even after holding the Cougars back from their last point for four rallies straight, Ventura ended with a 21-11 win in the second set, allowing them to win the match.
After a short break and warm up, seniors Ashley Sulkowski and Halleigh Paquette began their match against the Cougars. With this set of matches being crucial to Ventura’s win, nerves were high and determination was even higher.
Buena took a quick lead in the first set, scoring six points within the first ten rallies. Even with the quick rise from Buena, the sportsmanship was admirable as they clapped for each Bulldog point and high-fived the Buena players as they traded sides. After this switch, the Cougars began to rise and put pressure on the Bulldogs.
“[Halleigh and I] depended on each other a lot whenever we felt some pressure,” Sulkowski said. “Whenever we made a mistake, we would trust the other to bring it up, which really helped us stay positive throughout the game.”
With great communication from both duos, the match stayed close in score. Although the Cougars tried to hold Buena back, the Bulldogs won the first set 21-17, going into the second set overly confident.
“As soon as the first match ended, we started to let up. We stopped executing shots well and it brought our energy down,” Sulkowski said.
With simple mistakes from Buena, Ventura started to climb the board fast. Miscommunication from the Bulldogs led to multiple points being scored for the Cougars, and Ventura won the second set by six points, leading to a third set to 15 points to determine the winner.
While Buena started out the third set with a quick lead, the match quickly became back and forth once again. With long rallies and fierce contest, Ventura ended up climbing the board and ended with a win, 15-12.
“I am glad we got to play this game,” Sulkowski said. “It is sad that it is our last one, but I am glad we got to come out and really compete while we played our best.”
On the second court, juniors Ariett Garcia and Jordynn Anderson played at the same time. With the highest energy of the game, the duo held a lot of great rallies that ended in back and forth points between the teams.
“We like to come up strong and very energetic, that’s our tactic,” Garcia said. “With every point, we cheer loudly. If we miss a serve or a shot, we remind ourselves that it is ok and we move to the next play.”
While Ventura climbed into a quick lead, with the score during the first timeout being 15-6, Ventura, many mistakes were made by the Cougars, and Buena started to catch up. High-fiving as they switched sides, the Bulldogs streak ended as they struggled to hold Ventura back. The Cougars won the first set 21-18.
Starting the second set, Buena keeps Ventura from scoring too many points, staying around double the points of Ventura. Keeping their energy up, the duo cracked jokes and laughed the entire set, keeping things fun when the pressure hit.
While the Bulldogs held back the Cougars for a while, Ventura held Buena back from the final two points they needed after multiple great plays, gaining four points before a medical timeout was called. Coming out of the timeout, Buena scored their final points, ending the set 21-18 and calling for a third set.
“Our mindset for the match was strong,” Garcia said. “We started anticipating everything and changing our strategy as we needed, that’s when we started to [score up].”
At the beginning of the third set, Buena climbed fast, gaining a slight lead before Ventura began to climb as well. As Ventura got into the lead, the determination set in for Buena as they held them back and got into a 13-12 lead. With high energy from the sidelines feeding into the players, the Buena duo ended up with a win 15-12, celebrating with the entirety of the team as it was the only match to win.
“If I’m not doing it for myself, I’m doing it for my partner and team,” Garcia said. “It felt incredible to win for them.”
