Eagle ‘Chaos Queens’ Qualify for Beach Volleyball NorCals

Two Eagle beach volleyball teams competed against each other for a guaranteed spot in the NorCal Pairs Championships last week during the Golden Valley Conference double elimination tournament in Redding, and the score was close until the end.

Sophomore Zoe Brooks and freshman Khloe Smith, the Eagles' No. 4 team, became the first Siskiyous beach volleyball pair to qualify for NorCals by defeating sophomore teammates Rylee Brown and Quincy Paarsch, the Eagles' No. 3 team, in a final set decided by two points.

Brooks and Smith lost in the first round to Feather River's No. 2 team, then won three in a row to clinch one of the Golden Valley Conference's seven NorCal spots. They then played and lost a one-set match against Feather River's No. 5 team to determine who would be the GVC's No. 5 and No. 6 seeds at NorCals.

Brown and Paarsch won their first round match over sophomore teammates Heitiare Moala and Sarah Speasl, the Eagles' No. 1 team, then lost to Feather River No. 1 before then beating Moala and Speasl again. After losing to Brooks and Smith, Brown and Paarsch still had a chance to earn the GVC's No. 7 spot in NorCals. With all their teammates cheering them on, the score was 16-16 in the final match of the day before Lassen's No. 3 team pulled away.

Siskiyous head coach Lyndi Cadola said all the Eagles were "crazy competitive" in the GVC pairs tournament.

Moala and Speasl won their second match against Shasta, while the Eagles' No. 2 team of sophomore Sadie Graviet and Amelia Lucido lost to Lassen No. 3 and Butte No. 1 but, according to Cadola, "lost by two points in three nailbiters."

Cadola praised Brooks and Smith for their consistency and mentality and referred to them as "the chaos queens; they find a way to score. They played so well. They're always solid."

This was a season of many firsts for the Eagle volleyball program, which practiced and hosted matches on its new home court for the first time, finished with a best-ever second place in conference behind powerhouse Feather River, sent teams to the conference pairs championship for the first time, and qualified a team for the NorCal pairs tournament for the first time.

The Eagles were scheduled to host last week's GVC Pairs Championship tournament on their home court, but it was moved to Redding because of wet and cold conditions.

By Steve Gerace