With a season hanging in the balance, the varsity volleyball team had only two options: win or go home. The team started districts slowly, struggling against its first two opponents, Mehlville and Fox. This is when head coach Mark McAfee stepped in.

“We weren’t playing well at all in the beginning, [McAfee] started yelling at us to play like we wanted it,” said sophomore hitter Jack Gamache.

The ultimatum worked, and the team came out and defeated Francis Howell North in straight sets to win districts for the second straight season.

“After coach talked to us, we played better and were able to close out the tournament,” said Gamache.

The team will find itself in the state tournament for the second year in a row on Tuesday, facing Marquette High School in the state quarterfinals at Kirkwood High School. This follows a second place finish in state the previous season.

“It’s going to be tough [to get second in state again], but if we play tough and play our hardest, we can do it,” said Gamache.