Gridley senior middle hitter Gracie Dewsnup (12) hits a ball in the Lady Bulldogs sweep over Corning in straight sets on Tuesday, October 10. Photo by Steven Bryla

 GRIDLEY, CA (MPG) - The Gridley Bulldogs girls’ volleyball teammates continued their success with another Butte View League victory as they swept the Corning Cardinals in straight sets on Tuesday, October 11, (27-25, 25-19, and 25-13).

On top of Gridley snagging its fifth BVL victory last Tuesday, it was their final home game of the regular season and they honored the seven seniors on the roster that included libero, Giselle Fuentes, defensive specialist/libero Janessa Delgado, outside/middle hitter Alyssa Thompson, defensive specialist Sydnee Carr, middle hitter Gracie Dewsnup, opposite hitter Macie Nicholson and senior defensive specialist Alexis Porcayo.

The Lady Bulldogs and Corning battled back and forth in the first set as Gridley (14-13, 5-1 BVL) eventually pulled ahead to take the competitive first set of the match.

Dewsnup also made the return to the Lady Bulldogs lineup for the first time since after she has been out for nearly two months with an injury.

“It was the best feeling in the world to be back tonight,” Dewsnup said. “When my doctor gave me the note of clearance, I jumped for joy knowing that I could come back and play with my girls for one more home game.”

Dewsnup had six kills, two digs and a blocked shot in her return.

Gridley head coach Elizabeth Ayon expressed to the Herald that she was happy to see her senior players get a win on their senior night and with the performance throughout the match that showed them battle to secure a great team win.

The Lady Bulldogs still have yet to compete in a match with a full roster due to another key part of the roster being sidelined with an injury.

As Ayon has adjusted all season, her latest switch consisted of moving Fuentes from the libero role and adding Delgado at libero.

“Both girls have stepped up and shown the experience on the court to lead,” Ayon said.

Fuentes had six kills and 18 digs while Delgado contributed one ace and 21 digs in the win over Corning.

Delgado expressed to the Herald that the change going back to libero is a big responsibility of controlling the whole back row.

“I felt like I have stepped it up, I made sure I was there for my team,” Delgado said.

The other main position change on the floor for the Lady Bulldogs was junior outside hitter Charity Archer going to the left side of the floor.

Archer led Gridley in the win over the Cardinals with seven kills and three digs.

The Lady Bulldogs lost their next match as they were swept in straight sets by Oroville on Thursday, October 12.

Delgado expressed to the Herald postgame from the Corning match that they need to always have energy on the floor and be there for one another.

With the loss to Oroville, Gridley has their final road game at Orland on Thursday, October 19. Prior to the Lady Bulldogs match against Orland, the Trojans had a match with Corning this past Tuesday.

If Orland lost to the Cardinals, it would give Gridley a slim chance of being able to tie for the BVL crown if they beat the Trojans last night.

In the latest playoff points projections released by the CIF Northern Section on Friday, October 13, Gridley was ranked fifth in the Division III bracket.

 

Gridley senior defensive specialist Sydnee Carr (6) digs the ball in the Lady Bulldogs victory over Corning on Tuesday, October 10 in a straight-set sweep. Photo by Steven Bryla