DVC’s volleyball coach, Jackie Ponciano-Babb, emphasizes the importance of confidence every week to her Vikings.

For Friday night’s match against Modesto College, Ponciano-Babb asked the girls to bring their favorite inspirational quote to share with their teammates before they began warming up.

The hope was that the motivational sentiments being shared would become contagious, and that the Vikings would develop the vigorous swagger they will need to compete with the stronger teams in the Big 8 Conference.

The Vikings certainly displayed a courageous resiliency throughout their five-game bout with Modesto, eventually falling short 15-10 in the forced final game of the match.

The first game went to Modesto 25-21, but the Vikings countered in the next with a 25-18 battering of the Pirates that electrified the crowd in Pleasant Hill.

The third game was the most crucial of the match and proved to be a defining momentum shift.

It remained tight through the finish as the two teams swayed and substituted in hopes of finding an advantage to expose. The Pirates would eventually hold on to snare a close one 27-25.

Freshman middle Maggie Fishbaugh was outstanding for the Vikings. She passed the ball with adept finesse, and provided the tough, critical serves that kept DVC in the fight.

Michelle Galli came in as a clutch substitution and was “very effective” according to Ponciano-Babb.

The sophomore outside-hitter performed admirably with malicious serves and sprawled out to dig a scoring attempt from Modesto.

“That comeback in the second game was really big for us,” said Jessica Atkins, a sophomore at the libero position for the Vikings. “There was a lot of effort and we performed well under pressure… It’s an uphill climb, but we’re fighting.”

DVC staved off defeat in the fourth game and managed a 26-24 win over the Pirates, forcing a fifth game tiebreaker.

The Pirates, however, endured the siege and were able to outlast the Vikings in the fifth game and take the match.