It’s not what any volleyball team in the South Bay would necessarily expect.

Yet at Andrew Hill High School, taking an early-season trip to an out-of-town locale has become something of an annual tradition. The Falcons, coached by Matt Sandora, have traveled to tournaments in San Diego and multiple Hawaiian islands.

This year, they took part in a tournament on the Big Island of Hawaii, facing off against numerous local schools over Labor Day weekend. And for the first time since it began traveling to the islands, Andrew Hill was the tournament’s victor in the Gold division.

“It was a great time,” said Sandora. “It’s the first time that we’ve ever had a Gold championship victory, so it was amazing. But honestly, the best part was it was the first time some of the kids have ever been on a plane in their life, the first time they’ve ever left their parents.

“What a cultural experience for them. The other teams, at the end of the tournament, we had a big luau kind of thing, where they all brought food and they sang Hawaiian songs to us. It was an amazing experience for the kids overall.”

The trek was made possible by some of Sandora’s friends from grad school at Stanford, who sponsor the program and enable them to travel out of town once a year.

“It’s great to even have the opportunity to have a coach prepare us for Hawaii,” said outside/opposite hitter Jasleen Tomasetti. “This year, especially being our senior year, it’s great to win first place for the whole tournament. I’m just beyond grateful that coach led us to victory. It’s amazing.”

The benefits of the trip came on and off the court. On the hardwood, the title set the tone for a successful start to Andrew Hill’s season. The Falcons currently boast an 20-11 overall record and sit in fourth place in the competitive Blossom Valley Athletic League-Santa Teresa East Division.

But the biggest gains came away from the match-day spotlight. Both within their own team and with those they met in Hawaii, the Falcons forged bonds that will last well beyond the event’s tenure.

“At the end of the tournament, on the first day, they provided food,” said senior hitter Jeselle Tu. “All the teams left that were playing, at the end of the night, we ended up eating dinner together, we prayed together, we hung out and did cheers and interacted with each other. That created a bond with some of the girls in Hawaii too.”

— Christian Babcock

Castro Valley girls love a challenge

Castro Valley’s girls volleyball team hasn’t done much losing this season, going 15-3 this season and at one point enjoying a 14-match winning streak. Led by Isabelle Nicole and Stella Chang’s 87 combined goals, and the steady passing of Chloe Gilbert and Corinne Arakawa, the Trojans have steamrolled the majority of their opponents.

But sometimes, the best lessons can only be learned in losses, and that was a message that coach Bailey Barlow preached after a loss to uber-talented Las Lomas.

“They are a NCS Open Division team, and we knew it was going to be hard,” Barlow said. “There’s going to be teams that we have to grind it out against, and it’s not always going to go our way. It’s difficult, but learning to work through it is really important for us.”

Goalkeeper Peyton Sklut, who said she enjoys the leadership aspect of playing in front of the net, echoed her coach’s sentiments.

“These teams can go and win NCS, while the teams in our league are a little step below,” Sklut said. “Playing against a hard team like this is good practice, because we’re not going to play a team like this in our league in general.”

Castro Valley doesn’t expect to make the top Open Division but believes it is good enough to be seeded in Division I.

“We’ve never gone past round one (in NCS), and I think it would be a big thing for our high school if we could do that,” Gilbert said.

— Joseph Dycus

Walsh Jennings’ take on local rivalry

Mitty and St. Francis have a notable and storied volleyball rivalry that isn’t slowing down anytime soon.

The Monarchs and Lancers duked it out for the CCS Open Division volleyball championship last season, with Mitty coming out on top 3-1. This year, they’re back at it.

St. Francis took the first match between the two teams 3-1, but Mitty rebounded to win the last two 2-1 and 3-1. So which team is better?

Mitty currently ranks No. 1 in the Bay Area News Group Top 15, and the Lancers are No. 2. The pair seems ticketed for another championship showdown in November.

Kerri Walsh Jennings knows a thing or two about championships. Before she was a four-time Olympic gold medalist in beach volleyball, Walsh Jennings starred on the indoor court for the Monarchs, winning consecutive state titles from 1993-95.

So what’s her read on the state of the rivalry?

She hasn’t watched enough matches to parse out a clear favorite. But she wholeheartedly values the excellence of Bay Area prep volleyball, so much so that she relocated her family to San Jose for her children’s high school years.

“They’re kicking butt,” Walsh Jennings said. “Greatness is no accident. They talk about greatness, and they inspire greatness out of each of their student-athletes. For me to be in that environment was very special for me, and that’s actually why we moved back to town, because I wanted my kids to have that.

“So we have a freshman at Mitty and two other ones who will go through Mitty, God willing. But it’s really special. I really do believe growing up in this area was a huge part of my success, because you’re surrounded by everything, and excellence is the undercurrent in making dreams come true.”

— Christian Babcock