UKIAH >> UThe Mendocino College Eagles women’s volleyball team posted its best conference record in a decade this past fall and a good share of the credit belongs to five former Lake County high school players who are members of the squad.
That group includes two sophomores — defensive specialist Eryka Dale and middle hitter Elena Goss, both of Kelseyville — and three freshmen — outside hitters Aliza Atkins (Clear Lake), Heather Hankins (Upper Lake) and Autum Martinez (Upper Lake).
The Eagles finished Bay Valley Conference play at 6-6, the program’s best record since the 2006 team went 8-6. The team’s overall record was 8-10, the program’s best since the 2009 club finished 11-13. But for a few narrow losses, the Eagles’ record, both conference and overall, would have been even better.
Sophomores Dale and Goss were both second-year players for the Eagles. They, along with the two other sophomores (setter Jamie Mertle of Fort Bragg and Madi Dawson of Ukiah) formed a foundation for a revival of a Mendocino volleyball program that has languished in recent years.
After the program ceased to exist in 2014, new head coach Billy Offill took over in 2015 and led the team to a 6-10 conference mark and a 6-12 overall record. The 2016 team did even better and hopes are high the Eagles will continue to improve and possibly even contend for a conference championship in 2017 when eight players return, including Atkins, Hankins and Martinez.
Offill gives much of the credit for the program’s revival to his sophomores, including Dale and Goss.
“Elena is a really savvy hitter and kind of a coaches’ player. She knows what she’s doing. Eryka is a great defensive specialist. She had a really good year for us last year as a libero. This year she accepted her role as a defensive specialist and a substitute on the back row. Combined with (freshman libero) Kailee Orsi, they made our team really strong defensively.
“Those two girls (Goss and Dale) came in the first week of school last year. I remember the day they came into my office. The day those ladies came in, we got better. They come from a good high school program. They both have played volleyball their whole life. They’re so coachable and easy to work with. They know a lot of drills. It’s almost like having extra coaches.”
Added Offill, “They were a force that got this program back on the map (along with sophomores Mertle and Dawson). We went from not having a program (in 2014), to winning six games last year, to this year going .500 in conference and having a couple of really close misses. We were only a couple of games out of the playoffs.”
Dale played in all 18 Mendocino matches this season while Goss sat out most of the pre-conference matches with a leg injury. She was able to play in all 12 conference matches.
Dale finished 18th in the conference with 79 digs. Goss had 43 digs, 31 kills, four aces and five blocks in conference play. She was 30th in total points.
Another big force on this year’s team was freshman Atkins, who started in all 18 of the Eagles’ matches. She did not play volleyball in 2015 although she did play for the Mendocino softball team and will play softball again this spring.
Atkins proved her worth on the volleyball floor to the extent she was selected as an honorable mention on the 2016 Bay Valley All-Conference team. The former Clear Lake High School three-sport star may have been the most versatile player on the team with her combination of offensive and defensive skills, plus her fiery demeanor, according to Offill.
Some of the most vicious hits made in Bay Valley Conference play this season came off of her hands, but she could also change up with misdirects, cross-court shots, tips or push kills, according to Offill.
Atkins ranked fifth in the conference with 101 kills and third in kills per set at 2.81. She also was second in blocks with 25, 14th in service aces with 16, and third in points serviced with 142.
As a defensive player, she had 129 digs, third in the conference.
Freshman Adriana Salceda, Atkins’ teammate, led the conference with 57 solo blocks.
Mendocino’s two former Upper Lake Cougars, Hankins and Martinez, came off the bench for the Eagles this season, with Martinez seeing action in 16 matches and Hankins in seven.
Martinez had 24 kills, 14 aces and 26 digs with one block. Hankins had five kills and eight digs.
With the team bringing back eight players, including three from Lake County, Offill said, “The future’s bright. You’re going to see a contending Eagles team in the near future.”
