
It’s difficult to tell what is most exciting about attending a girls’ volleyball team match at Point Loma High School (PLHS). First, there’s the intense, spirited play of the 15 girls who make up the Pointers’ varsity team as they leap, dive, set and spike through the emotional, marathon matches. But on a recent Friday afternoon, with a varsity football game still under way on campus, the old gym’s seats are filled on one side by a contingent of dozens of students — mainly boys — who loudly hoot and cheer every move on court. And on the main side, players’ benches and an officials’ table are surrounded by a sizable and vocal group of parents and community supporters who thrive on the game’s action. It’s a loud, passionate and electric experience. And it’s growing in popularity. New head coach Davis Ransom took last year’s previously underachieving Lady Pointers to 15 wins, including a late-season surge that carried the team to the CIF semifinals before losing to Western League foe and eventual 2010 Div. II section champion Scripps Ranch. All this was accomplished in only one season after the 2009-10 girls won just six games. Preparing to enter playoffs this season, the Lady Pointers have already notched 19 wins — and two of those were especially sweet. Ransom’s previous coaching assignment was at Western League foe La Jolla, and the Vikings humiliated the Pointers by winning all three matches played last season. This season, however, the Pointers reversed their fortunes with victories last month at La Jolla and in the rowdy Pointers gym in an Oct. 21 match by scores of 25-16, 20-25, 25-21 and 25-21. The game preceded an annual “Senior Day” ceremony for the team. A post-game ceremony saw each of the PLHS team’s seven seniors and their parents receive flower bouquets while an underclass teammate read a tribute thanking the seniors for their leadership and assistance. Along with powerful Scripps Ranch, the Western League also includes 2010 Div. III CIF champion Cathedral Catholic, so the Pointers’ regular-season third-place finish is a lofty accomplishment. Two teams in last year’s six-school Western League won CIF titles, making it San Diego’s toughest girls’ volleyball league. This year’s league consists of five teams, and the Pointers will finish ahead of both the Vikings and University City. A check of previous Western League records shows Cathedral Catholic has a 48-0 record in league matches dating back five years. As a private school, Cathedral is allowed to recruit players in all sports within current CIF rules. New CIF Commissioner Jerry Schniepp has indicated he will form a committee to look at the issues of public-versus-private schools.









