SAN JOSE >> Having won a section volleyball title as a player and a coach, Chloe Goldman never forgot the one she lost in her first finals appearance as Salinas High’s coach.

Six years after being humbled by Homestead, a shot at redemption awaits on Saturday as the Cowboys punched their ticket back to the Central Coast Section Division I finals after knocking off No. 2 seed Branham of San Jose Thursday night.

Salinas, the reigning section champion, won its 13th straight match, sending Branham (26-5) home after a 25-13, 14-25, 25-16, 25-22 road win in the semifinals.

“I don’t know much about them (Homestead) other than we have some common opponents,” Goldman said. “At this point, whatever team is the smartest will come out on top. I’ll wait until Friday to watch film.”

The last time top-seeded Homestead — which swept Carlmont of Belmont in the semifinals — and Salinas met in the CCS Division I finals, it was the Mustangs sweeping them in 2018.

Runner ups in the Santa Clara Valley’s De Anza League to Los Gatos, Homestead has swept its first two opponents in the playoffs to improve to 27-8. Five players have over 120 kills, including freshman Katie Hamberger and her team-leading 230.

During its current 13-game winning streak, the Cowboys (23-10) have swept 11 opponents, including two teams that are headed to their respective section divisional title matches.

“I remember telling someone earlier in the year this team has the potential to repeat as CCS champions,” Goldman said. “It was a matter of how bad they wanted it and how bad they were willing to work to get there.”

Unlike last year when Salinas rode the arm of current San Jose State beach volleyball player Sabrina Moore and her 500-plus kills, it’s been a committee approach this year with five different players compiling six or more kills a match.

“That’s why we’re so hard to defend,” said Goldman, who won a CCS title as a player in 2004. “If someone is having a hard night, someone else can contribute. We have a lot of balance. It’s fun, but unpredictable.”

Understanding their roles took some time. Salinas was just 9-8 in nonleague matches and suffered more league losses this year (two) then it had in its three previous Gabilan Division seasons.

“I know we’ve lost more matches than we normally do,” said Goldman, whose squad was 40-1 during its run of three consecutive Gabilan Division titles from 2021-23. “But as long as we got better, I felt good about the direction we were headed.”

With setter Cadee Guzman spreading the ball around the floor in the first set, Salinas made quick work of the Bruins, before getting a wakeup call in a second set loss.

Branham outside hitter Giselle Paedon, who came into the match with 385 kills and 998 for her career, was a disruptive force in the second set.

“We got away from our game plan in the second set,” Goldman said. “The game plan was to slow down their Division I hitter. These girls have the ability to lock in and focus. When we don’t mess around, we excel at it.”

That was evident in the final two sets, where Salinas regained its focus, dominating the third set, building an eight-point lead in the fourth set before holding off a late Branham charge.

Bella Storelli has elevated her game in the postseason, compiling 18 kills for Salinas, while Mackenzie O’Hara finished with 13. The pair have combined for 45 kills in seven sets in the playoffs.

Part of Salinas’ resurgence in the second half stems from the return of Indy Aguilar, who missed seven matches with an injury. The defensive specialist has solidified the back row, finishing with 21 digs against Branham.

Division V

Crystal Springs Upland 3, Palma 0 >> The defending State Division V champion Gryphons are headed back to the Central Coast Section finals after ending Palma’s 11-game winning streak in the Division V semifinals in Hillsborough.

Seeded No. 2, Crystal Springs Uplands secured its 25th win of the season with a 25-15, 25-23, 25-19 decision, as it will face top-seed Shasta Summitt for the section title on Saturday.

Showcasing girls’ sports for the first time in 60 years, the No. 6-seeded Chieftains inaugural season of girls’ volleyball ends at 15-6. They earned the program’s first ever postseason win 24 hours earlier in sweeping No. 3 seed Santa Catalina.

“There was some pressure, especially without our libero,” Palma coach Ivan Garcia said. “We were in unfamiliar territory. We made a lot of mistakes we could have fixed.”

The Chieftains played the first two sets without libero and captain Frankie Rossi, who suffered a lower back injury in the first set of Wednesday’s quarterfinals match against Santa Catalina.

However, the senior convinced Garcia to put her into the match in the third and final set, where she recorded seven kills in her final high school match.

“She came up to me before the third set and said ‘it might be my last time on the floor, let me at least try,’” Garcia said. “I put myself in her shoes. If I was a senior and this was potentially my last high school set, I’d want to play.”

Palma had been unbeaten since five starters were cleared to play after missing the first nine matches of the year because of the CIF transfer rule, having played varsity volleyball at another school in 2023.

Maya Giannini finished with 21 kills and 10 digs for Palma, while Reese Amaral tallied nine kills and seven digs. Rachelle Andrade compiled 26 assists and nine digs.