PALO CEDRO, CA (MPG) - For the fourth year in a row, the East Nicolaus volleyball team completed the regular season by claiming the Northern Section Division V crown but this time around, the Spartans did something different than they had previously by remaining undefeated in 27 matches.

Having won their previous three title games on the court at Foothill High School, it was a familiar venue, but the pressure was squarely on the No. 1 Spartans on Saturday, Nov. 9, as they took to the court not only to defend their title, but also to keep their unbeaten streak alive.

However, the fact that they had been there before was evident as they bounced back after dropping the second set to close out No. 2 Quincy 25-14, 19-25, 25-15, 25-14.

Arguably the best team in all the Northern Section, regardless of school size, East Nicolaus had lost only a total of five sets coming into the match, but after blowing the Trojans off the court with their power in the first set, got complacent and allowed the scrappy Trojans to take the second.

It was a self-inflicted wound according to one of the team’s senior leaders, Addy Tagala, who described what had occurred after the match. 

“We do this to ourselves for some reason,” said the setter, who handed out 29 assists in the match and was a perfect 26 for 26 from the service stripe with seven aces. “We play a great set and then get lax.  Coming into the third set we knew that if we gave them an inch they’d take a mile.”

However, as they have all season, the Spartans regrouped and methodically dispensed of Quincy, a process made easier due to the effort of another of the squad’s seniors, Jadyn Hoffman, the reigning section MVP, who was virtually unstoppable on the attack, slamming down a season-high 28 kills and hitting at an astounding .591 clip.

But Hoffman was also a factor on defense making a team-high 13 digs as East Nic neutralized another of the sections’ top hitters in the Trojans’ Shelby Nussle.

Over the past four years, the duo of Tagala and Hoffman have helped pave the way for the Spartans four-peat prompting former head coach and current assistant Donald Takeuchi to say, “It’s going to be hard to find another pair like Jadyn and Addy.”

Still, to pull off the feat, East Nicolaus also got significant contributions from others including 10 kills from Makinze Massey, while in the back row Ashlynn Tagala and Kendall Kocher made nine and seven digs respectively.

Although the Spartans’ season continues in the 2024 CIF State Championships, the win was bittersweet, marking an end of an era that both Tagala and Hoffman acknowledged.

“This one is much more emotional and I’m just trying to absorb it and take it all in,” Tagala said, while Hoffman commented that although “the winning part didn’t feel all that different, knowing that this was the last time made it a little bit sad.”

East Nicolaus (27-0) received the No. 8 seed in the Division III state bracket and is scheduled to host No. 9 Vanden (Fairfield) in a first-round match on Nov. 12 (after press time).