The confidence meter continues to grow for St. Francis after winning a fifth consecutive match Thursday night.
In a clean sweep, the Sharks defeated North Salinas in three sets 25-19, 25-16, 27-25 in Pacific Coast Athletic League Cypress Division play.
Senior outside hitter Peyton Orradre had seven kills for St. Francis, while teammate senior setter Georgia Otzman recorded a game-best 20 assists and two setter dumps.
Senior middle blocker Madison Silva added five kills and a trio of aces for the Sharks, who improved to a 10-3 overall record are now 5-1 in league play this season.
“We have more energy, more confidence than we did last year,” Silva said. “I feel like we’ve all grown as individuals and as players, and we’ve all gotten better.”
The Sharks are led by a solid group of seniors in Silva, Orradre, Otzman, Mia McClendon, Alisa Lumicao and Julie Lopez, who contributed seven kills and nine aces on Thursday.
St. Francis second-year head coach Sabrina Bracken said she could tell since last year this particular core of seniors wanted to win more than anything.
“It’s my second year coaching now, too, so they know what I expect,” she said. “You’ve got a very disciplined team. So I think that all of that put together has really helped.”
Bracken mentioned several of the veterans have experience playing club volleyball at a high competitive level, and took clinics over summer.
“I feel like when we were juniors we were kind of leading the pack in that way,” Otzman said. “I think us growing up and being seniors has kind of helped with our leadership skills.”
The rest of the Sharks squad features juniors Kai Ortiz and Ella Dewig, sophomores Aly Peterson and Lea Padilla and freshman Michelle Tamari.
“I don’t have that much height on the court, but these girls have a lot of heart, and they’re just ready to go for it,” Bracken said.
Bracken said the younger players have been performing well, yet she’s hoping to see a bit more aggression similar to what the upperclassmen bring on a daily basis.
The Sharks’ skipper added the youngsters could be timid to be around the seniors, but she assures they’re as much of a leader on the team as anyone else.
“I know they have the potential to do it, and I know they have the heart,” Bracken said. “They are younger, so there’s a little maturity thing there.”
Tamari is one of the underclassmen already making an impressive start to the 2025 fall campaign. Bracken said since the first day of practice her frosh defensive specialist has shown a love for the game, and is expected to have an impact down the road.
“When [Tamari’s] a senior, she’s gonna be pretty unstoppable,” Bracken said. “She’s tiny, but she’s fierce.”
Bracken has been impressed with the fact that the Sharks are considered contenders for the PCAL Cypress Division crown this season.
In 2024, they finished in the middle of the pack with a 7-7 record in league play.
So far, they’ve recorded league victories against North Salinas, North Monterey County, Marina, Rancho San Juan and Seaside to go 5-1 in league play this season.
St. Francis’ lone loss in league play was against Pacific Collegiate in a match that went the distance to five sets.
“We lost a lot of seniors last year, and I think it was really important building chemistry with our team,” Otzman said. “Now I feel like we’re all very close and connected on and off the court so it helps with our playing chemistry.”
Orradre said the overall goal is to win. And not just games, but a league championship, as well.
She also wants a return trip to the Central Coast Section playoffs after getting a taste of what it was like last season.
The last time St. Francis won a section title was the Division-V championship in 2008, which Bracken was a member of at the time.
“I know if we don’t go to CCS, the season’s cut early,” Orradre said. “So, I really want to go to CCS to see how far we can get because I do know it’s my last time playing volleyball.”
Even if the Sharks don’t wind up bringing home a Cypress Division title, Bracken is still confident enough they can at least earn a CCS postseason berth.
“I wasn’t sure if they had it in them but they’ve shown that they can come out and play,” Bracken said.
Next up, St. Francis (10-3, 4-1) hosts Pajaro Valley in PCAL Cypress Division action Oct. 6 at 5pm.
