The Monte Vista Christian girls’ volleyball team hit the ground running to begin the 2024 season with 10 consecutive wins.
It’s an excellent start for senior Elizabeth McCuistion, who has seen her shares of ups and downs these past four years with a program that always seems to have to prove itself on a yearly basis.
“We just have a mentality of we have nothing to lose. Even though we have a really good record, I think we have a chip on our shoulder,” she said. “We see ourselves as the underdogs, and we’re here to play.”
It’s similar to when McCuistion was a sophomore on an underestimated Mustangs team that won the Pacific Coast Athletic League Mission Division crown in 2022.
She was hoping for a repeat the following season. It was far from it. McCuistion mentioned how things weren’t clicking, primarily on service and defense.
A lot of that has changed since first-year head coach Britteny Long took over. The new coaching staff has players conditioning like they’ve never had before, and McCuistion is noticing her teammates, including the younger ones, continue to step up.
The Mustangs have seniors Madison Mello, Maia Kilinski, Hailey Gomez and sophomore Mayla Miller-Spahn all returning from last season.
They also have newcomers in senior Nadia Oropeza, juniors Ella Batt and Samantha Boltdi, sophomore Gia Johnson and freshman Angelina Rodriguez-Pucket, who are making an impact thus far.
McCuistion is on her third different head coach in four years. The Mustangs veteran said Long, 32, is pushing them every day and holding players to high expectations.
“Lots of running. I’ve never ran so much in my life before,” McCuistion said. “A lot of people were frustrated coming in because they’re not used to being necessarily yelled at or held to high expectations.”
She mentioned the first week of practice was rough. Now the players have warmed up to Long, who is originally from Gunnison, Colo. and previously coached at Washington Middle School in Salinas.
“Now we really love [Long]. She’s been a great fit for our program, and we’ve seen really great success, so far,” McCuistion said.
McCuistion said at that time of their win streak they played with confidence, trusting each other on the court and building a great chemistry between the girls.
“And we’ve been doing a lot of conditioning,” she said.
The reason McCuistion keeps emphasizing conditioning is because not only does it help them physically, but it also trains them to be mentally strong.
That should come in handy as the Mustangs entered PCAL Gabilan Division play mid-September. They currently own a 1-4 record with the lone win coming against Santa Catalina on Sept. 25.
Don’t let the record fool you, though. MVC has kept up powerhouse teams such as Pacific Grove, Carmel and Salinas—the defending league champion.
The Mustangs were swept by Salinas in the teams’ first meeting Sept. 19, yet there were moments where the Cowboys looked to be on their heels.
“They run a fast offense, they mix it up a lot, and they have a lot of consistent players. But I think once they’re under pressure, they have a tendency to make more errors, and that’s where we need to be as consistent and put the pressure on them,” McCuistion said.
At one point, MVC took its first lead of the match in the third set and gained momentum for just a moment.
McCuistion knows they’re capable of competing well in the Gabilan Division, which is the highest tier of the four within the PCAL. She said it’s about being more consistent and limiting mistakes such as serving out or not getting the tip up.
“It’s just the little things that we need to put together. And once we’re there, I think we have a great potential to compete,” she said.
And McCuistion is all in for the rigorous workouts. However, she’s also well aware they need to rest. For the past two years, several Mustangs players fell ill going into their first match of the Central Coast Section playoffs.
In 2022, they had three girls get pneumonia and McCuistion had to be carried out of the gym.
“Getting sleep is going to be a really big priority for us so we don’t get sick this year. Making sure we’re all staying healthy, resting up, getting in the recovery room, ice baths, everything,” she said.
The season is still young. Long has no doubt they can hang, and even beat, anyone in the Gabilan Division with this group.
“I genuinely believe that. I know what they can be. It’s just they have to play their game,” she said.
The Mustangs bounced back with a four-set (16-25, 25-21, 25-20, 25-20) victory over Hollister in league action Oct. 3. It was the first win over the Haybalers in eight years.
So far, Long is impressed how much the players have grown since the first day they met in the summer. She said they’ve progressed and adjusted to her style of coaching which is different from what most are used to.
“I’m a screamer, I’m a yeller. I’m loud. And when I do that, they feed off of it and they do even better,” Long said.
It was noticeable in MVC’s game against Salinas. The moment Long began hollering at her players, they began to pick up the tempo and played with assertiveness.
“I feel like they’re just really starting to finally be able to work together better, but you always have hiccups. Not everyone’s going to play their best game every game…You just have to be able to sub accordingly and fix what you know needs to be fixed,” Long said.
Up next, the Mustangs (11-4, 1-4) will compete in the Watsonville High Girls Volleyball Tournament on Oct. 5. The tourney is scheduled to begin at 8am.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story stated that Presley Pastrell was part of the Monte Vista Christian girls’ volleyball team, which in incorrect. Pastrell is no longer a member of the program.
