It’s now June, and starting this weekend—well, tomorrow, to be exact—the prefectural qualifiers for the National High School Sports Festival, commonly known as the Inter-High, will finally begin.
The format of the qualifiers varies by prefecture, but in ours, 54 girls’ volleyball teams are divided into four blocks. Each block runs a tournament over two weeks. The winners of each block then face off in another tournament the following week, and only one school emerges as the prefectural representative to advance to the Inter-High.
…Yeah, it’s a brutal prefecture. In some places, the top two teams get to advance, or the matches are played as a round-robin league instead of a knockout format, but here, it’s a one-shot deal. Win or go home.
By the way, since Matsubara Girls’ High School’s volleyball team lost in the first round last year, we’ve earned the honor of a “reverse seed” slot. To become the block representative, we have to win four matches straight.
“That's it for today’s practice. Now, let’s talk about the Inter-High qualifiers this weekend.”
Our coach, Saeki-sensei, gathered us in front of the whiteboard. For what it’s worth, whenever we’re called together, it’s always initiated by Captain Eri shouting “Gather up!” and we all respond with a loud “Yes!” before jogging over to the whiteboard. Truly a sports club kind of vibe.
“To put it bluntly, your true strength is still unknown. There are many weaknesses, yes, but also considerable strengths. If everything clicks into place, I believe you can even beat Himesaki High.”
Himesaki High is the powerhouse of girls’ high school volleyball in the prefecture—top tier nationwide as well. According to Asuka, “They’re not as strong as they were last year,” but that’s only in terms of national level competition. They’re still the strongest in the prefecture without question.
“So don’t be intimidated. Fight with confidence. Also, sorry it’s late, but I’ll be handing out the uniforms to the first-years now. Don’t forget them tomorrow.”
The uniforms we were given were based on the same light blue color as our tracksuits. …Though personally, I still feel a bit embarrassed that they have “Matsubara Girls” embroidered on both the front and back. It’s been nearly a year since I became a girl, but still…
“!! Yuki’s uniform is a different color! Why?”
“Yuki’s the libero. The libero has special rules—they can substitute in at any time, but can’t spike or block. That’s why their uniform color is different from the rest.”
“That’s right, Reiko. Good job knowing that, Yuuri.”
“My sister’s the libero on the national team, after all.”
“Oh right, I forgot. If you keep training, Yuuri, maybe someday you’ll be wearing the national team uniform alongside your sister.”
Eh, I don’t know about that. Still, with Mika-nee being who she is, I at least knew that liberos wear a different color. Yuki’s uniform is a dark green, unlike ours. Super cool.
As for jersey numbers, the third-years kept their existing ones. For the first-years, the numbers were assigned from the lowest available based on class order and attendance number (according to Saeki-sensei). So, here’s the current lineup:
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#1: Eri-senpai (Team Captain)
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#2: Miho-senpai
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#3: Reiko
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#4: Hina
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#5: Yui-senpai
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#6: Me (Yuuri)
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#7: Asuka
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#8: Yuki (Libero)
“Alright, Yuuri. Since you know about liberos, here’s a question for you. List all the court positions in six-player volleyball, not including the libero.”
“Okay. Starting from the front-left and going clockwise: Front Left (FL), Front Center (FC), Front Right (FR), Back Right (BR), Back Center (BC), and Back Left (BL).”
“Correct. Just as I expected. Also, as you all probably know, the BR serves. When we regain serve, the positions rotate in the order Yuuri just listed. Everyone clear on that?”
“Yes, ma'am!!”
“As for this weekend’s match, these will be the starting members. Unless someone gets injured or things really aren’t working during the game, you can assume this lineup will stay for the whole prefectural qualifiers.”
“!!”
Saeki-sensei silently wrote down the positions and numbers on the whiteboard.
Only six players and one libero are allowed on court in a match. We have eight members. Which means…
FL: #5 (Okazaki Yui)
FC: #6 (Tachibana Yuuri)
FR: #4 (Tachibana Hina)
BR: #1 (Itagaki Eriko)
BC: #3 (Murai Reiko)
BL: #7 (Tobe Asuka)
Libero (L): #8 (Arimura Yukiko)
→ Substitutes in for #3 and #6 when they are in the back row.
Net
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FL FC FR
BL BC BR
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End Line
…Miho-senpai’s name isn’t on there. But Saeki-sensei doesn’t mention it. He’s always said it clearly: “We’ll play with the strongest possible lineup we can come up with.” That’s why none of us ask. We can’t ask.
“First, Yuuri and Reiko. You’re free to play your way. No one on this team is going to complain about mistakes made from trying. If you go for a receive and miss, that’s fine.
But if you don’t go for the ball—if you make a mistake from hesitation—that’s unacceptable. Also, don’t hold back with spikes and serves. Don’t just ‘try to get it in.’ If you’re going to mess up, mess up being aggressive. Got it?”
“Yes, ma'am!”
“Next, Eriko. You are the core of this team—no matter what anyone says. So hold your head high, keep your voice loud, and lead. I had you serve first for a reason: your serve is the most consistent. Break their momentum from the get-go.”
“Yes, ma'am!”
“Yui. You’re our main blocker. Don’t worry about the first-years being taller or anything like that. On court, you call the shots when it comes to blocks. Yuuri, Reiko—jump when Yui jumps. Where Yui jumps, you jump.”
“Yes, ma'am!”
“Hina. You’re our setter—our game-maker. You control the flow of the match. Also, remember that your sister and Reiko can’t handle advanced sets yet. Always give them high, gentle tosses. Don’t forget.”
“Yes, ma'am!”
“Asuka. With monsters like Yuuri and Reiko around, you might lose confidence, but don’t. Under normal circumstances, you’d easily be our ace attacker. You have the skill and talent. Believe in yourself.”
“Yes, ma'am!”
“Yukiko. As you know, Yuuri and Reiko have spent almost all of the past two months focused on spikes and serves. Their receiving practice has been lacking. When you’re on the court, cover for both of them. Understood?”
“Yes, ma'am!”
“And now—”
・
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The meeting ended. We packed up the equipment and headed back to the clubroom. The air was heavy. One person wouldn’t be playing. And that person was a third-year.
“Whew. That was close. I really thought I’d be the one dropped from the starting lineup, but turns out it was Miho.”
The one who broke the tense silence was another third-year, Yui-senpai.
“Actually, the other day, Miho and I went to talk to Saeki-sensei together. We told him, ‘Please don’t go back on your word about using the strongest possible team. If we’re not good enough, drop us—even if we’re third-years.’”
That was a shocking confession.
“Honestly, at the time, I thought it was going to be Yui who’d get cut,” Miho-senpai admitted.
Huh? Was that a surprisingly shady comment from Miho-senpai?
“Haha, maybe I shouldn’t be the one saying this, but I also thought I’d be the one to get dropped. But I guess it came down to position, huh? I’m the only middle blocker (MB) on the team. Maybe that rarity helped me keep my spot.”
“Oof, that stings. Hina’s an amazing setter—really skilled, tall, and pretty too…”
“Hey, being pretty has nothing to do with it. Though yeah, Hina is cute and pretty.”
The third-years were laughing. …What is this?
“That’s why I keep telling you first-years not to worry about it,” Eri-senpai stepped in to explain.
“Of course we want to play—especially as third-years. But having the strongest players on the court is only natural. Besides, I heard that back in the day, it wasn’t unusual for players at Matsujo (in short for Matsubara Girls) to go three years without ever setting foot in an official match.”
“And it’s not like I’ve given up. Sensei said earlier, ‘The prefectural qualifiers will go ahead with this lineup.’ That means if we make it to the main tournament, there’s another chance for selection, right?”
“Ugh... So that means you’ll be fighting Miho-senpai again for the starting setter position?” Hina asked timidly.
“Well, our team does have a bunch of strong spikers. Maybe a two-setter system could work. In that case, the one who doesn’t become an attacker—Yui—would be my rival.”
“What!? I’m not giving up my regular spot that easily! Just try and take it from me!”
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It’s true—a two-setter strategy might suit our team, with our powerful spikers. But do we have time to practice that setup? How much time is left?
More than anyone, the third-years know how tough it is just to get through the prefectural qualifiers.
They know that. But they’re joking around on purpose—to keep the mood light.
・
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That evening, on the way home, I had a brief chance to talk alone with Reiko.
“Miho-senpai’s been playing volleyball since elementary school.”
“We’ve been playing for two months.”
There’s such a thing as talent in this world. Just spending time on something doesn’t guarantee success—or growth. The idea that hard work always pays off is only half true. Those who succeed almost always worked hard, but not everyone who works hard will succeed.
“How many matches do we need to win to get through the qualifiers?”
“Six matches.”
“Then it’s decided. We win six matches and get Saeki-sensei to do another round of player selections.”
“That was the plan from the start. I mean, Reiko, didn’t you start volleyball because Asuka told you, ‘Let’s win the nationals’? In that case, clearing the prefectural qualifiers is the bare minimum.”
“Right.”
I exchanged a quick back-and-forth with Reiko—but we were both dead serious. We’ll show them what two months of all-out volleyball looks like.
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