The Dorsey girls’ volleyball team earned the in-season championship for the Coliseum League. The Dons also rank in the top 10 of the Los Angeles City Section Divison IV standings.
“They’re a team and they battle for each other,” said head coach Quinton Bradley. “Their confidence is high.”
Despite struggling during the Venice invitational and losing their preseason game to Hamilton High School, Dorsey excelled in the Coliseum League. Their record was 9-1 in the season for conference games, the Dons lost to only Fremont in early October.
During that game, senior outside hitter Tyla Moore had three kills and 12 digs. Junior Darlin Martin earned four kills and four serving aces. Senior Ashley Melgar clinched six serving aces and nine digs during the four-set match, according to Max Preps.
“My favorite game was the second time we played Fremont because that was the only school we ever lost to,” said Moore. “We were down by two sets and we came back and beat them and it was like a victory because we knew that we was gonna be number one.”
After winning seven matches, the Dons reunited with Fremont. They ousted Animo Robinson, snapping their seven-game winning streak in two sets and giving Robinson their first loss of the season. Dorsey also defeated rival school Crenshaw High in three sets before their rematch with Fremont.
When Fremont visited Dorsey on Oct. 21, Moore led with 16 kills and 12 digs. Melgar fired seven service aces and 11 digs. Senior Flor Beltran had 9 digs in the five-set match.
Bradley has been coaching for four years at Dorsey. For the first time under Bradley’s tutelage, the Dons surpassed the first round of the Division IV playoffs.
In the first round, Dorsey met with Animo Robinson and beat them in three sets. Senior Zharia Crawford made four solo blocks. Melgar earned eight digs and nine service aces. Moore clinched 11 kills and six serving aces, according to Max Preps.
The Dons started strong during their quarterfinals game against the Jordan Bulldogs by winning the first set, but could not surpass the prowess of Jordan. The Dons lost after four sets of play.
Moore looks up to Bradley and strives to excel in volleyball because of him.
“When I first tried out in ninth grade, he didn’t want me to play because I was goofy and I didn’t know how to play,” said Moore. “But he used to always tell me ‘You have potential to be good’.”
