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Photos by Elli Lahdesmaki

On Tuesday, the gym was brimming with energy as Blue Crew and other fans wore shirts with “DIG PINK” printed on the front, cheering as the varsity girls volleyball team dominated Palo Alto High School in a 3-0 win during the annual Dig Pink match.

This is the seventh consecutive year that the Los Altos and Palo Alto volleyball teams have collaborated on a Dig Pink game, a fundraiser for the Side-Out Foundation. The Side-Out Foundation is known for funding award-winning research and clinical trials that aim to better the lives of women with breast cancer.

Senior co-captain Kaitlyn Wong believes

that participating in the Dig Pink match allows players to make an impact beyond the court and invites the community to join in their efforts.  

“For me to participate in a game like [Dig Pink] means a lot,” Kaitlyn said. “I am so humbled to be playing with my favorite people…for this amazing cause and [for] something that is so much bigger than ourselves.”

The game was also important to the team because they had lost to Palo Alto earlier in the season, and had been waiting for the opportunity to redeem themselves and beat their undefeated opponent.

The first set began slowly for the Eagles, and they quickly fell 1-5. However, with strong defense and a kill by sophomore outside hitter Naomi Cremoux, they were able to tie the score 8-8. Soon, both teams were stuck in a deadlock, exchanging kills and digs. After a hit by senior Jackie Wang allowed the Eagles to take a 21-17 lead, the team started chipping away to their 25-21 victory.

The second set started similarly to the first: Palo Alto quickly took the lead 4-7 but the Eagles tied the game 8-8 when the Vikings committed several unforced errors. Once again the two teams were neck and neck, neither team maintaining a lead over two points. When the score was tied 23-23, the Vikings missed their serve, allowing the Eagles to reach set point. With a kill by Naomi, the Eagles closed the set 25-23.

Unlike the previous two sets where the Eagles had a slow start, in the third set they were able to quickly able to gain a 11-5 lead. With the rest of the match mirroring a similar pace, Los Altos claimed the set 25-20.

The Eagles’ win was not the only success that night. Through receiving donations and selling shirts and baked goods, both teams fulfilled and exceeded their goal of raising $1,500 for the Side-Out Foundation respectively, and accumulated more than their $3,000 goal.

After the match, Kim said that he was impressed with how cleanly and cohesively his team played. This win reinforced his firm belief that the Eagles will compete in CCS and possibly achieve even more in the future.

“[Our goal is] to hopefully win CCS in Division 1 [this year] and then after that go into NorCal and try to win the Northern California Championship.” Kim said.

Watch the Eagles continue their CCS run at their next game on Senior Night against Monta Vista on October 18.