The women’s volleyball team advanced to sixth place in the Big 8 Conference after their 3-0 win against Folsom Lake College on Friday.

Team captain and sophomore defense specialist Cassidy Pham said, “I think the most important element of teamwork on the court is having teamwork off the court.”

Pham said having a game-day ritual allows for routine and consistency while keeping them calm.

“We all have little superstitions, so I’ll roll up my teammates’ sleeves on their jerseys every game,” Pham said.

The team overall had a hitting percentage of .106 and 30 kills throughout the three sets. Before the game against FLC, the team was 9-7 within the Big 8 Conference, according to Cosumnes River College’s athletic website.

“I think we’ve had a rough start to our conference games. Having this win and having the win from last week was really important to us,” Pham said. “We wanted it so bad because we started off really rough, but this team does not quit.”

The team won the first set 25-14 when freshman outside hitter Heaven Callahan Gray spiked the ball over the net.

Callahan Gray said their team bondings help the team grow closer to each other.

“It makes us connect in a way we can’t on the court,” Callahan Gray said. “I think that comes in during games, it makes us realize we are all we have.”

The team knows each other’s weaknesses and motivates each other, Callahan Gray said.

“My best strength is staying positive, even when I’m not doing the best or when my team’s not doing the best,” Callahan Gray said.

The team won the second set 25-17 after FLC failed to return the ball.

Davina Amen, a freshman outside hitter, said the team had been wanting the win for a while.

“It honestly felt awesome and knowing we actually earned that win,” Amen said. “We earned every single point. We fought.”

The win will benefit them because the team had been doubting themselves recently, Amen said.

“We’ve been trying to find our confidence,” Amen said. “I think having this win is building up our confidence for our game next week.”

The team won their third set 25-23 with FLC scoring points closely behind.

Head coach Kari Nahlen said the team focused on their strategy of hitting deep corners and hitting off-hands during practices for the game.

“The first two sets were hitting really good percentages,” Nahlen said. “The last set we didn’t do as well, but we were able to take the last four points of the sets to solidify the win.”

Nahlen said she felt nervous for everybody with a close score ending the game.

“The girls called the time out and we just said ‘this is the time’ and we have to earn every point,” Nahlen said. “They went out and they got an ace, they got a kill, they got a block and they earned it out all the way through.”

The team is play-off bound but they have to continue to win against elite teams, said Nahlen.

“We have Sac City coming up on Wednesday and that’s going to be a tough game to win, but we are capable of doing it,” said Nahlen. “That’ll be the last of the first half of our conference, so we’ll have another time that’ll we play anybody.”

The team will play Sacramento City College at 6 p.m. on Weds. on Clark Court. Currently, SCC is in fourth place in the Big 8 Conference.

Nahlen said she hopes the biggest takeaways the team receives are time management and being a team player.

“Every game, win or lose, these girls push themselves and they get better,” Nahlen said. “It’s so fun to watch.”