Jessica Prokop – For the Review. The Wildcats played in the Cal-Lu-fornia Tournament in Thousand Oaks, Calif., on Sept. 11-12.
Their tournament play opened with a game against Cal Lutheran University.
In the first set, Linfield won 25-20. However, the team could not hold it together for the next three sets, losing 16-25, 23-25 and 20-25.
Later that day, the team redeemed itself, defeating Claremont-Mudd-Scripps College in three sets with scores of 25-23, 28-26 and 28-26.
Linfield played the University of California, Santa Cruz on Sept. 12.
In the first set, the ’Cats eked out a win, scoring 25-22, but dropped the following two sets with scores of 19-25 and 21-25.
The team gained momentum in the fourth set, dominating Santa Cruz 25-16. In the tie-breaker match, however, Linfield fell short, losing 6-15.
“Some days we have great games and then not so good ones,” head coach Shane Kimura said.
The Wildcats played the final game of the tournament against the University of Redlands.
The ’Cats held their ground in the first match, but lost 23-25. The next two matches were not any better. The team couldn’t turn it around and lost both with scores of 15-25 and 19-25.
“It was weird how many people were there,” freshman Amy Bumatai said. “I felt like the new kid in school. I felt overwhelmed, but all of the girls are really nice.”
During tryouts, the ladies worked on a variety of skills. The majority of the tryout, however, is dedicated to the girls playing six-on-six against each other to gauge their game performances.
“In order to be at a varsity level, you need to be skilled, aggressive and quick,” junior Julia Altenhofen said.
When looking for girls for the varsity squad, talent and skill come into play. However, the final decision comes down to the positions.
Kimura said, realistically, he knows not everyone on the team is going to see a lot of playing time. So, he looks for players who will help out in practice. He calls them “role players.”
Bumtai said team chemistry is still developing.
“We are really starting to click,” she said.
Play hard, play smart, play together: That is what the ’Cats plan to do.
Kimura said he hopes the team will finish in the top part of its conference. Pacific Lutheran University has been the past conference champ and will be Linfield’s biggest competitor.
Bumatai said Linfield is expected to take third in the Northwest Conference.
The team’s strength, Kimura said, is its athletic players. Its weakness is not being able to play consistently.
The team travels to Spokane, Wash., on Sept. 18 for the start of NWC play against Whitworth University. The Pirates own a 4-7 overall record with one win in the last four games.
After another road match against Whitman College, the Wildcats return to McMinnville to battle Pacific Lutheran University.
“Ten years from now, you’re not going to remember the wins and losses: You’ll remember your teammates,” Kimura tells his players.