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Spring High School Volleyball – Prefectural Final Qualifiers, Girls’ Finals
Right After the End of Set 2
From the Commentary Booth
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“In the prefectural autumn volleyball tournament, girls’ division, with a place in the All-Japan High School Volleyball Championship on the line, Matsubara Girls’ High School has taken back the second set, making the set count 1-1. It’s back to even. Coach Tashiro, what did you think of the second set?”
“Unlike the first set, Matsubara Girls’ High School seemed to shake off their stiffness. That was a major factor in them taking this set.”
“Before the second set started, you mentioned that ‘whoever gets a three-point lead first will win.’ And it was Matsubara Girls’ High School that got that three-point lead. It played out just as you predicted.”
“It wasn’t that difficult of a prediction, really. Matsubara Girls’ is made up entirely of first-years, and even their coach is in their first year of coaching. They’re overwhelmingly lacking in experience. That showed up as pressure in the first set—being the big match that could send them to Spring High. Of course, the way the seasoned Himesaki High School played to make that happen was also impressive. The key point in the second set was whether Matsubara Girls’ could regain their composure, and whether Himesaki High School could keep pressing their nerves. In the end, Matsubara Girls’ regained their energy and composure and took the second set. That’s all it was.”
“Do you think Matsubara Girls’ can keep this momentum going?”
“That’s hard to say. All they’ve done is return to playing at their usual level. In terms of overall ability, Himesaki High School probably has the slight edge. That said, because Matsubara Girls’ doesn’t have experience, they sometimes make unorthodox plays that go against standard tactics. If those happen to work, then a team like Himesaki—who has mostly been facing strong, by-the-book opponents—might find themselves caught off guard.”
“Unorthodox plays?”
“There are a few examples. Take the younger Tachibana sister. In that last set, she unveiled a jump float serve. Judging by how polished it was, that wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment thing—it’s something she’s practiced. From here on, every time she serves, the opponent will have to guess whether she’ll go with a spike serve or a float serve. That’s not a bad thing, but personally, I’d have taught her the back-row quick pipe attack before the float serve. It feels like a missed opportunity, doesn’t it? A float serve only comes around once every six rotations, and even then, it’s a choice between that or a spike serve. Compare that to a back-row quick pipe, which can be used three times in six rotations and boosts the team’s overall attacking power since she becomes part of the spike formation. Which one do you think is more valuable?”
“That’s quite the pointed observation, Coach Tashiro. But perhaps Tachibana just hasn’t shown it yet—maybe she can do the back-row quick pipe already.”
“If that’s the case, I don’t really see the point in holding back this long. They already dropped the first set, after all. If she could do it, she should’ve used it earlier. ...That may sound a bit stern, but it’s a sign of how much I believe in her potential. There’s no doubt she’s an outstanding player.”
“And in the upcoming third set, which features that very player Coach Tashiro has high hopes for—what do you think will be the key to victory?”
“Serve receives. Matsubara Girls’ has Tachibana, and Himesaki has Tokumoto—both exceptional spikers. I haven’t crunched the exact numbers, but I’d say their spike success rates are over 60%. That’s incredible. In girls’ volleyball, even a 50% success rate is considered ace-level. The question is whether the team can deliver a proper toss to these reliable aces—and for that, it all comes down to how cleanly they can handle the first touch. And that’s difficult for both sides. Himesaki High School is a well-balanced team, both offensively and defensively, but even they will likely struggle to cleanly receive serves from Matsubara Girls’, who have several strong servers. As for Matsubara Girls’, their receive skills overall are still lacking. Himesaki doesn’t necessarily have standout servers, yet in both the first and second sets, Matsubara often couldn’t return the ball to the setter’s position. I’d like to see both teams remember the basics of volleyball: ‘Good spikes come from good sets. Good sets come from good receives.’”
“I see. Ah—looks like the match is about to resume. This is the girls’ division finals of the autumn volleyball tournament. Which team will take the lead toward Spring High? The all-important third set is about to begin.”
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