After a back and forth battle, girls’ varsity volleyball prevailed over a scrappy Marin Catholic team in the MCAL championship game on Saturday night in a packed College of Marin gym.

The Giants defeated Marin Catholic to earn their first MCAL title in four years. They won three out of the five sets in their triumph, bringing their record to 15-0 in the league.

“Being on the team for four years, coming up short every time, and finally finishing it off, it just makes me speechless,” senior Marguerite Spaethling said.

Consistent defensive plays by seniors Amanda Lamar and Lily Barber were complemented by powerful hits from junior McKenzie Cooke and senior Elly Lundberg. This supported the Giants in their close first set victory of 25-21.

“Feeding the ball to the outsides and getting our hot hitters the ball were huge factors in our win,” Spaethling said.

Battling back with key hits, the Marin Catholic offense attacked the Giants at a fast pace in the second set to tie the score with a 26-24 win.

According to Spaethling, though the team could work on improving their serves, their main focus revolves around keeping their play consistent for each point.

In the third set, the Giants struck back, setting Lundberg up for three consecutive hits. The Giants quickly took advantage of communication errors by Marin Catholic to earn a decisive 25-12 win.

The 32-30 fourth set victory by Marin Catholic was tightly contested with continuous hits from each team. The Wildcat defense was overwhelmed by hits from Cooke, Lundberg, and Spaethling, and key offensive and defensive plays from junior Mari Molina. However, the Giants were unable to come up with the fourth set win, leaving the game tied at 2-2.

“Even though we lost the fourth set, I think that’s some of the best volleyball we’ve played,” Spaethling said.

The gym settled down for the fifth and final set after the crowd roared during the exciting fourth set. An immediate 9-1 start to the set gave the Giants confident energy. Maintaining their dominance for the rest of the set, the Giants defeated the Wildcats 15-4, causing the game to end in a 3-2 Giants victory.

“Even the people who don’t play provide so much energy for us. It’s so cliché, but we are one big family and that’s what makes it so special,” Spaethling said.

The team will look to carry their momentum into the upcoming NCS playoffs.