PETALUMA — A familiar face was on the bench Saturday as the Middletown High School varsity volleyball team won all five of its matches to claim the title at the St. Vincent Tournament in Petaluma.
No, it wasn”t head coach Jennifer Breiner, who couldn”t attend because of the 24-hour bug she came down with prior to the Mustangs” first match. It was former Middletown High School volleyball and basketball star and California Lutheran University athlete Jessyka Wood who filled in.
The Mustangs promptly sent Breiner a get well card in the form of a 5-0 tournament record, topped off by a 14-25, 25-17, 15-13 victory over Rincon Valley Christian in the championship match. Before that, Middletown knocked off Kelseyville 25-19, 27-29, 15-6 in the semifinals.
“The girls worked hard throughout the day, especially when it came to the championship match, and it made me feel like part of a team again,” Wood said.
Earlier in pool play the Mustangs beat Geyserville 25-11, 25-5, Anderson Valley 21-25, 25-21, 15-11, and St. Bernard 25-17, 25-21.
Kayla Wood, Jessyka”s younger sister, led the Mustangs with 56 kills and Kelsey Guzman added 31 kills and a team-best 12 blocks. Other standouts were setter Sara Tucker with 105 assists, Jen Emberson with a team-high 11 aces, Jessica Boylan with 20 kills and eight aces, and Haley Tallman with 10 kills and nine aces.
