LINWOOD — Coach Greta Pacevich’s Caper Tiger volleyball team has improved to 9-3 on the season as the girls aim high.
On Thursday, Sept. 24, Mainland Regional High School provided a tough fight, earning a pair of set points against the Lower Cape May Regional High School team. The Caper Tigers, however, held them off and won 25-21, 27-25.
“Our team knows that we can get out of deep holes,” junior Ava Riggins said after the game at Mainland. “I just love how we all picked each other up and we eventually won against this team. I’m really proud of this team.”
Riggins, who leads the team in kills with 120 to go along with 60 service points and 78 digs, believes changing the lineup has made a difference “and all the connections on and off the court are really helping.” Riggins had eight kills against the Mustangs.
“I’m really hoping for a South Jersey title; I think we deserve it,” Riggins said. “We’ve all been working hard. That’s my goal.”
Senior Harley Siner would take that a step further.
“I want to go out with a state title,” she said. The Caper Tigers were second in Power Points in South Jersey’s Group I to start this week, just a little behind McNair.
Siner said the team pulled out the win against the Mustangs “just working very hard. After a long day of school, we’re all kind of tired, but we all kind of get together and our energy is just there,” she said. “We play as hard as we can.”
She attributes the team’s overall success to the hard practicing they’ve been doing since the middle of July.
“I think that really helps a lot and our bonds because we’ve been together for such a long time, this group of girls,” Siner said. “I think it’s really special that we have all worked so hard together.”
Fellow senior Georgia Shutter credited her teammates for pumping her up for games against opponents like MRHS.
“I do even better going against schools that are tough and never let the ball drop,” she said. “When we’re against opposing teams like Cedar Creek and such, they’re seen as better than us and we just get so much better going against teams that are so much more tougher.
“It’s fun, even if we lose — it doesn’t matter about the score. It’s just fun going against teams that just never give up,” Shutter said. “It inspires our whole entire team as well.”
She wants to enjoy this last season with her teammates.
“I definitely just want to have as much fun as I can. This is my last year and I just want to have so much fun with my girls and get even better as I go,” Shutter said.
Assistant coach Dave Pacevich credited the victory to the team’s hard training.
“They are in the second half of their season and we’d like to see them do the same thing they did the first time,” he added. “They beat Mainland the first time. We were hoping they would come back and do the same thing. Mainland played really well and gave us an even better game this time, which we appreciated.”
Pacevich said the coaches are very happy with how the team is doing and the fact there are a lot of players who will be returning next year.
Because of where the team is ranked in Power Points, if they keep up their pace they could get some home games in the playoffs, Pacevich said.
Senior Chely Candeleria is second on the team with kills, tallying 44 so far. She also has 49 service points and 16 aces. Fellow senior Addie Pacevich is the assists leader with 193. She also had 76 digs and 54 services points and a team-leading 23 aces.
Junior Melinda Reeves leads in digs with 117 to go with 39 service points and 15 aces. Junior Zoey Heaney has 60 service points and Siner is right behind with 57, including 18 aces. She also had 24 kills.
The Caper Tigers have a lot of road games, but will be home next at 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 2, against Timber Creek. They’ll also be home at 5:15 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 8, against Absegami.
LCMR is atop the National Division in the Cape-Atlantic League.
By DAVID NAHAN/Cape May Star and Wave
