STORY BY JONATHAN SINTORA, STAFF WRITER
PHOTO COURTESY OF CYPRESS COLLEGE ATHLETICS
Cypress Beach Volleyball prepares for State Regionals this weekend following a promising performance at the OEC Pairs Championships at Irvine Valley College.
Four pairs represented Cypress College in Irvine, two of which qualified for the State Regional championships this weekend.
The No. 1 pair, Kaelyn Arnold and Rose Whitter went the distance, defeating teammates and No. 2 pair Larissa Samano and Hailey Church in three sets to qualify for regionals.
The No. 4 pair Zoe Ziegler and Jessica Ferreira defeated the No. 1 pair from Saddleback College and the No. 2 pair from Riverside College to secure their spot at regionals.
The No. 1 pair and No. 4 pair both advanced to the State Regionals.
The Cypress Chronicle met with the team during practice to discuss how they’ve been preparing for the upcoming State Regionals.
Head Coach Danko Iordanov discussed the importance of team chemistry and how it’s helped the team throughout the season. Iordanov said, “I believe our team has very good team chemistry. I think it is a very welcoming environment.”
Assistant Coach Jordon Wilson added to the importance of team chemistry and how communication has been a key asset to the team’s success. Wilson said, “Communication is obviously very big… You can’t always see what’s going on so you need your partner to talk to you to see what’s going on your side of the court or the other side of the court.”
As State Regionals approach, players highlighted areas they’ve been addressing ahead of this weekend’s matches.
Freshman Hailey Church said that watching videos and studying her opponent’s tendencies are a top priority. Church said, “It helps us look at what we should be doing… what the other team is doing, and how we can do better.”
As the team wrapped up their practice, Iordanov said, “I am very happy with everybody’s performance.”
Wilson made it clear what the team’s goals were. Wison said, “A state championship, that’s the goal!”
