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Scrappy Riptide rebound from disappointing loss
Venture Academy-River Islands girls volleyball
River Islands outside hitter Skylar Ellis (11) spikes past the block from Venture Academy’s Aaliyah Abrans (22) and April Gomez. - photo by JONAMAR JACINTO/The Bulletin

Two nights after a disappointing four-set loss at Central California Athletic Alliance champion Holt Academy, River Islands responded with perhaps its best all-around effort of the season.

The Riptide scrapped for every point on Thursday against visiting Venture Academy, even toward the end when victory was all but secured. The result was tidy 25-8, 25-9, 25-7 sweep that lasted just 53 minutes.

Venture Academy-River Islands girls volleyball
River Islands’ Leighann Ruiz (2) reaches above the net to try and deflect the tip from Venture Academy’s April Gomez. - photo by JONAMAR JACINTO/The Bulletin

“They were the scrappiest they’ve been all season tonight,” River Islands coach Rhiannon Genilla said. “I think that (loss) lit a fire under them and helped them realize that we really want to leave it all out there on the court.”

River Islands (6-1 CCAA, 9-12 overall) had some highlight moments during a six-point run in the third set. Freshman outside hitter Skylar Ellis closed back-to-back rallies with kills, extending the lead to 19-6. The first kill came after a Leighann Ruiz kept the play alive with a hustle save. The Riptide was again out of system for the next point, but middle blocker Jaselle Cliatt reacted well to an errant pass and set Ellis for the put-away.

Venture Academy-River Islands girls volleyball
Jaselle Cliatt (13) receives the serve to get the attack started for River Islands in a Central California Athletic Alliance home match against Venture Academy. - photo by JONAMAR JACINTO/The Bulletin

Ellis has been a welcome addition to the varsity squad after River Islands lost a key player for the season. The freshman has not only fit in well with her older teammates, she has quickly turned into a reliable go-threat hitting threat. She led all players with 14 kills on Thursday, and Ruiz — a sophomore — had eight.

“She’s fun to watch, because she has that hunger,” Genilla said. “She wants to be part of the team, and she just melds right into our culture. She’s making nice, hard corner shots, or getting nice rolls. She’s being very intentional with her decisions. She was ready for this.”

Venture Academy-River Islands girls volleyball
River Islands setter Corley Simoni makes the pass, as Venture Academy’s Aaliyah Abrams stays ready on defense. - photo by JONAMAR JACINTO/The Bulletin

Setter Corley Simoni finished with six kills and 21 assists. She also ended the match with two straight aces. Aaliyah Smith had four aces, while racking up 16 service points.

Middle hitter Sarah Wegner led Venture Academy (3-3, 12-8) with three kills and two blocks. The Mustangs took just two leads all match, both in the second set at 4-3 and 6-5. Ruiz tied it with a kill for River Islands, and Smith served eight consecutive points.

River Islands has two road matches next week, heading to Millennium on Tuesday and Hughes Academy on Oct. 15.