Under an arch of green and white balloons, seniors Tessa Fergusson, Ella Higday, Fiona McDermott and Gigi Wigglesworth each walked arm in arm with their parents as teammates cheered beside them. Four jumbo-sized baby pictures awaited them on the court, one for each player, to celebrate their final regular season home game.
On Monday, Oct. 20, GDS played Stone Ridge, the top-ranked team currently in the Independent School League (ISL) A Division. The ISL league is split into two divisions. The AA Division is the upper division and A is the lower division. GDS is in the AA Division.
GDS was looking to extend their undefeated record in the ISL and defend home court before their last two regular season games, both of which are away.
The first set opened with a series of back and forth rallies before a double contact call against Stone Ridge gave the point to GDS. A series of missed opportunities from GDS and strong hits from Stone Ridge’s outside hitter put the Gators up by three. GDS then tied it at 8 with strong spikes from McDermott and Wigglesworth.
With momentum growing, Higday served two aces, and junior Alexa Telly hit three kills. Their efforts fueled a 7–0 GDS run before Stone Ridge called a timeout at 15–8.
“I was focused on getting the ball in,” Higday said of her aces. “He [head coach Brandon Wiest] was giving me a spot, and it was one I liked, so I kept going for it.”
After the timeout, GDS took advantage of Stone Ridge’s soft hits to take the first set, 25–13.
Junior Caycee Chhum started the second set with six straight serves.
“None of the balls were super ace-y,” Chhum said. “I could rely on somebody, especially the seniors today, to put the ball down.”
The energy on the GDS bench was electric; a spike from Wigglesworth to put GDS up 8–2 prompted the entire bench to start doing pushups in support of their captain.
“The team has really come together this year, and we’re having so much fun playing,” Higday said. “You can see how happy we are on the court when we win a point or do something good.”
From that point on, the Hoppers’ momentum only grew. GDS continued to attack open spots on the court, taking the second set 25–14.
As the third set began, Stone Ridge scored the first point, trying to claw their way back from a two-set deficit.
But it was not to be. GDS scored the next 13 consecutive points, overwhelming the Gator defense.
The Gators did begin to gain some momentum halfway through the third set with a 3–0 run, powered by Stone Ridge’s outside hitter and libero. The score was 16–7.
“They fed her [the outside hitter] almost every set,” McDermott said. “It was a mix of making sure we were blocking her and hitting to the other passers on the court.”
The crowd watched with anticipation as the teams traded points. The Gators weren’t giving up easily, and GDS called a timeout at 21–16.
But after the timeout, GDS truly took control of the game. Wigglesworth hit an ace and junior Zora Dimbo spiked the ball right after. Up 24–18, Fergusson, a senior, got the game-winning hit off a set from Chhum. GDS had won senior night.
“I’m extremely proud of them,” Wiest said. “We knew it was an emotional night, and our seniors were able to lead the way.”
The team will next play Bullis at home in the ISL Tournament on Oct. 27.