El Capitan’s Torres named WAC volleyball MVP

Dayanna Torres always possessed the skill set.

The El Capitan High School setter had every pass in her arsenal as a junior last season, leading the Gauchos to the first playoff match in school history. She ran the offense with precision and provided coach Maycol Fernandez with that floor general mentality volleyball coaches covet.

The only thing holding Torres back was Torres herself.

“I think that I was someone who got frustrated with myself when I didn’t do something right,” Torres said. “I know that no one is perfect and everyone is going to make mistakes, but I still struggled with letting things go.

“I came into this season wanting to have a more positive attitude. I wanted to be more of a leader for the team, and to do that, I knew I needed to believe in myself. That belief came out in a positive energy on the court.”

The Gauchos embraced that energy and ran with it. With Torres running the show, El Capitan won 19 matches and went undefeated in Western Athletic Conference play en route to the school’s first volleyball title. Torres also helped lead El Capitan to its first playoff win and was named the conference MVP this week.

“(Torres) was our best player this year. She more than deserved it,” said Fernandez, who was named the WAC Coach of the Year. “She was very consistent, both in games and in practice. Just a really hard worker.

“She’s our best all-around player. She can serve, she can play defense, and she’s really smart. Setters don’t get this award a lot, so it was nice to see her recognized.”

El Capitan had three first-team players, the most in the WAC, as Ariana Johnson and Adyn Walton joined Torres. The two juniors were Torres’ top targets, providing the Gauchos with a potent inside-outside game in the offense.

“Having two great hitters like that makes everything easy for me,” Torres said. “They know where to put the ball, and we have a great relationship on and off the court, so we know how to read each other. I’m not as successful without them, and they probably aren’t as successful without me, so I’m glad they were recognized, too.”

Los Banos and Central Valley each had two first-teamers after tying for second place. The return of outside hitter Sharon Lampreda and middle blocker Bailey Allen will stamp the Tigers as favorites entering next season. The Hawks, meanwhile, will need to replace the production of seniors Julia Ramsey and Ellysa Widas.

Patterson’s Esther Ekwueme rounded out the first team.

The Gauchos landed two representatives on the second team, Makenzie Webber and Linda Avila. Central Valley (Alyssa Costa), Ceres (Jessica Arreola), Livingston (Tina Lao) and Patterson (Estefania Ramos) had one player each on the second team.

This story was originally published November 17, 2015 at 5:59 PM with the headline "El Capitan’s Torres named WAC volleyball MVP."