SUTTER, CA (MPG) – The Sutter Huskies girls varsity volleyball team swept the Wheatland Pirates in straight sets at home Monday night, September 26.

Sutter (20-4-1, 7-0 Pioneer Valley League) controlled the serve right from the beginning in the first set when they scored the first 10 points of the match. They didn’t allow Wheatland (10-9, 2-5) to get any rhythm through the entire match, scoring a high of 10 points in the second set.

Huskies head coach Elizabeth Bhatti liked how her team was able to stay focused throughout the match.

“They didn’t let the score dictate any lack of focus,” Bhatti told the Territorial Dispatch.

Sutter has four senior captains this season: Carsyn Minton, Mia Minard, Natalee Gardner and Gracie Langsdorf.

“This group of seniors is good at keeping everyone relaxed,” Bhatti said.

Langsdorf led the Huskies with nine kills in the match along with three digs and two assists against the Pirates. She told the Dispatch that the team is tight knit because their communication is great on the floor from playing with one another throughout the years.

Minard led Sutter with 26 serves in the match and had four aces. She added a team-high 15 assists, three kills and had the second-most digs with five.

The Huskies have seven scheduled PVL matches left, but Minard told the Dispatch that she believes this team can make a deep playoff run.

“This team can go far and win sections with how we play and communicate on the court,” Minard said.

Minard added that her and her fellow captains keep their teams’ spirit up and try to keep them focused on the task at hand. Bhatti told the Dispatch that she gave her girls journals to write in throughout the year when they face adversity. She added that she had journals as a player and knows other programs utilize them as well.

“It helps the girls understand each other,” Bhatti said.

According to Bhatti, the journals have been successful in the past because a perceived weakness a player may have of their game is spoken of as a strength by their teammates. The Sutter players have full confidence in one another.

Minton finished second in the match with seven kills and two assists. She told the Dispatch the confidence came from controlling the serve in the first set.

“Our consistency helps us stay on top of our mindsets,” Minton said.

She added instead of looking at the score, the consistency keeps them on top of their game.

This is the first year that all Sutter sports teams have moved from the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Northern Section to the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section. Wheatland also made the jump.

Gardner, who had a team-high seven digs in the match, told the Dispatch that they have had to work harder.

“We have become closer as a team because we don’t know what to expect with some of these teams, working hard and communicating with each other,” Gardner said.

The Huskies play Wednesday night on the road at Marysville (5-10, 3-4). 

Sutter will play its next home game on Monday, October 3 when they host the Colfax Falcons (10-6, 5-2). The Huskies swept Colfax in straight sets on September 8.