DHS boys open volleyball season with a win

With just five returning players and no preseason scrimmages to get their feet wet for the 2013 campaign, the Davis High boys volleyball team needed a few games to work out the kinks in Friday’s night’s opener.

But after splitting the first two sets, the Blue Devils found their collective stride and blew Yuba City away, eventually finishing off a 25-23, 22-25, 25-9, 25-17 victory at The Cage.

“We just started to get our rhythm a little bit,” DHS coach Julie Crawford said of her team’s strong performance in the first two games. “In past seasons, we’ve had a jamboree the Saturday before the opener to get the jitters out. This year we didn’t have that and for some of the guys it was their first time ever stepping foot on the court for a volleyball game.

“Once things started clicking, we really started to get it going and I was really pleased with the way we played.”

Crawford’s teams always try to be strong service squads and judging by Friday’s outing, the 2013 Devils will fit into that mold.

“We served really well,” the coach said. “So that is going to hopefully set the tone for the season.”

DHS is also blessed with a couple of big hitters in returning seniors Sam Manderfield and Daniel Bonetti, who recently came to the team after the Blue Devil basketball season ended with a playoff loss last Wednesday. Crawford said setter Don Wook Shin, a first-year senior, did a good job setting them up on Friday.

“Daniel Bonetti just finished basketball and was ready the next day,” Crawford said. “He came out (Friday) and played one of the best games I have seen him play.”

Another bright spot was the play of freshman Nick Simons.

Davis is back in action on Tuesday, hosting Sacramento at 5 p.m.