Kennedy Earns Piece of the Pie by Cutting Down Chatsworth

It’s official.

The Kennedy High girls’ volleyball team can call itself a contender for the Northwest Valley Conference--and maybe more--after a 15-4, 15-13, 12-15, 15-4 victory over Chatsworth on Thursday night at Kennedy.

For the first time since 1991, the Golden Cougars (4-0) defeated the Chancellors (1-3).

To the victor goes the acclaim. And a free lunch from the coach.

“No practice tomorrow,” said Kennedy Coach Mike Stanton. “We’re going to Chuck E. Cheese’s instead. They get tokens, too.”

They can thank solid serving (15 aces) and a fundamentally sound defense that disrupted Chatsworth.

“That’s 15 points,” Stanton said. “Right there, that’s one game.”

After barely registering a blip on the screen in the first game and falling behind in the second game, 5-0, the perennially strong Chancellors began to play like their old selves.

Jennifer Joseph had eight consecutive service points and Chatsworth was ahead, 11-5.

But then came the new Chatsworth--tentative and inconsistent. Six hitting errors and three service errors helped Kennedy take a 2-0 lead in games.

Chatsworth showed enough to overturn a 12-10 deficit and win the third game, but the Golden Cougars showed more--and served better--in the fourth game. Kennedy had five aces, three by Christel Price.

“Chatsworth has always been the big school, ever since I was playing in ninth grade,” said senior captain Christine Thach, who had 11 kills despite a sprained right ankle.

“To beat them is indescribable. It’s our year.”

Chatsworth won the City Section 4-A Division championship in 1994 and lost in the title match last season.

“It’s different when you’re used to winning every game,” Chatsworth setter Pam George said.

“We’re just not as much of a team as we were last year. I’m hoping things will change.”

Until then, the only changes going on involve Kennedy.