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Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009

Serving up a victory: Atwater's Frank helps volleyball team reach second round with big night

ATWATER -- Jaclyn Frank peered across the net like a pitcher looking in to home plate for a sign.

The Atwater senior has plenty of serves in her arsenal. She can serve short or long. She can go with a topspin or a floater.

Frank had them all working on Tuesday night.

The senior spent almost the entire third game carving up the Elk Grove defense. Frank served 16 straight times as No. 3 seed Atwater won the final 17 points of the third game to finish off an efficient 25-15, 25-16, 25-6 sweep of No. 14 Elk Grove in the first round of the Sac-Joaquin Section Division II playoffs at Atwater High.

"It was a really long run," said Frank, who finished with four aces. "They kept switching in players and I kept going right after the new players."

It was that kind of night for Atwater (16-0), which dominated from start to finish.

Elk Grove never really challenged the Central California Conference champions.

Atwater put together long runs in every game and never gave up control of the match.

"That's how it needs to be in the playoffs. I don't care who you are playing or where you're at," Atwater coach Toni Muratore said. "We want to continue to grow and get better and show it in the playoffs."

Muratore was a senior on the last Atwater team that won a playoff game in 2000.

That was also the last Atwater team to go undefeated in the CCC.

"It feels good to win a playoff game," said senior Nicole Heller. "It's been a while. That was one of our goals at the beginning of the year. We wanted to get to the second round and now we're there."

Frank did more than just serve. She also led the team with a match-high 12 kills.

"She was on fire tonight," Muratore said. "I could hear her out there telling the girls to keep pushing or finish strong.

"You need someone to bring the fire. That's what you want out there. I told my girls you need to listen to her."

It was far from a one-girl show for Atwater.

Nicole Heller finished with 10 kills and eight blocks. Joslyn Apodaca chipped in with 10 kills and setter Marissa Guardado orchestrated the offense with 31 assists.

"We had a good time out there," Heller said. "We did what we know how to do. We didn't make a lot of unforced errors."

While Tuesday's outcome was never really in doubt, Atwater knows the second round won't be so easy against No. 6 Granite Bay, which swept Beyer 3-0 on Tuesday.

"We're ready for the challenge," Muratore said. "We've been preparing all season for it. The postseason is a brand new game. Every game is like playing a Buhach Colony or Golden Valley and we want it just as bad.

"We want to be champions and I think it can be done."

VOLLEYBALL

Sac-Joaquin Section Playoffs

Division II

ATWATER 3, ELK GROVE 0

25-15, 25-16, 25-6

At Atwater

ATWATER -- Kills: Jaclyn Frank 12, Nicole Heller 10, Joslyn Apodaca 10; Blocks: Heller 8; Assists: Marissa Guardado 31; Digs: Alli Gurden 21, Nikki Schiber 17; Aces: Frank 4.

Record: Atwater 16-0.