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UNDER the lights of the Guam Sports Complex in Harmon, teams from various GovGuam agencies were set and ready to take on one another in the 2012 DPR/GovGuam Coed Volleyball League.

In the final game of the night, it was a battle between two Department of Education teams as L.P. Untalan Middle School took on the Inarajan Middle School squad. With both teams putting in a mixture of fun and competitiveness, the match was filled with excitement and laughter. However, when the dust settled it was the group from down south that picked up the 25-17, 18-25, 16-14 victory.

“Both teams did well and it came down to whoever had the least mistakes that would decide a winner,” said Inarajan’s Rose Duenas.

With each team winning one set apiece, it came down to a nail-biting third set to declare a winner. Inarajan was first to strike as they opened a 3-1 lead backed by a service ace by Chelsea Sablan. However, Untalan managed to equalize the game courtesy of Inarajan errors.

Both teams traded points back and forth that forced several ties and lead changes. Midway through the set, the Wildcats regained a 13-11 lead after Jim “The Principal” Reyes found an opening in the Inarajan defense.

Inarajan maintained composure and battled back to knot the game at 13-13 after a hit down the line by Jordan Topasna followed by an Untalan error. The tension in the match got bigger when an Inarajan passing error gave Untalan the chance to end the match. However, a tip by Loretta Farnum gave Inarajan some hope as the game was tied at 14-14. It was from that point on when Inarajan closed out with two straight points to claim the victory.

Early problems

Starting the game short-handed, Untalan ran into some early problems as they lost an early lead and gave Inarajan the opportunity to build a 10-3 lead.

Looking to end the first set quickly, Inarajan continued to play smart volleyball as they attacked the open spots of Untalan. The Inarajan lead eventually grew to 15-6. However, the Wildcats stayed confident and together with unforced errors by Inarajan managed to narrow the gap to 18-15. After returning from a timeout, Inarajan went back to work and closed out the first set on a 7-2 run.

Despite keeping the game close for a majority of the second set, Inarajan eventually hit a wall that allowed Untalan to fire up late in the set. Backed by the heads-up play of Reyes and teammate Rodney Pama, the Wildcats were able to string together points that eventually gave them a 22-18 lead. Pama eventually ended the set after recording a kill.

“It was a great game against Untalan, we come out here to play and have fun no matter who we challenge,” said Inarajan’s Duenas.