The Birmingham Charter High School girls varsity volleyball team ended the season with a loss in the final game but they made up for it by winning playoffs, becoming city champions and advancing into state playoffs.

The first step to breaking a playoff loss streak was to win the first game against the CALS Early College Falcons, which they did by winning all three sets. They proceeded into the quarterfinals against Vaughn High School and won by 3-1. Now the only thing standing between them and finals was the Maywood Academy Nighthawks.

“It feels better because I’ve been in varsity since freshman year and we’ve taken a lot of (losses) but I feel like we’ve finally made up for that,” junior Keona Paniagua said.

The semifinal game on Nov. 1 was rocky at the beginning with the Lady Hawks being up by six points. As the game progressed, senior and Varsity Captain Hailee Kessler tied the game at 15-15 and made two additional points for a score of 17-15. Paniagua kept her team ahead at 21-18 and Kessler made the final point ending the first set. They could only get better from there and ended up winning all three sets, bringing them up to the finals.

The final game of the tournament took place on Nov. 3 at Granada Hills High School against Maywood CES and the Lady Patriots showed their determination to win throughout all three sets. They emerged as Division III city champions and were given individual medals and a trophy.

“It feels so amazing to win city especially since this is my senior year,” Kessler said.

The Lady Patriots began their next endeavor on Nov. 6 as they advanced into state playoffs playing and winning against Lincoln High School. They traveled to San Diego on Nov. 8 to play their second game against High Tech High.

“I feel really excited because I’ve never been to San Diego and also because I’m going with my team,” junior Cindy Ovalle said. “ I’m looking forward to playing my hardest.”

Unfortunately, the Lady Patriots ended their winning streak in San Diego by losing to High Tech High with 3-0.