New Pitman girls volleyball coach Ari Amini understood all too well that he had a big task in front of him replacing the legendary Kristen Pontes-Christian.
So far, so good.
The Pride have raced to a 5-0 start, including a perfect run through the Stockton Kickoff tournament, and are currently the No. 1 ranked team in the Sac-Joaquin Section, and 17th in the state.
“I’m pretty happy with the embrace the girls have given me,” said Amini. “There’s been a lot of excitement and eagerness to perform well this season, from everyone, myself included. The reception I’ve gotten has been awesome.”
Amini and Pontes-Christian — winner of three section titles, including a Northern California championship in 2014 — talked after last season and came to the conclusion that with the loss of six seniors to graduation that 2024 would be something of a rebuilding year. Five of those seniors were starters, including Central California Athletic League Offensive Player of the Year Madison Eissayou, and Setter of the Year Payton Rowell.
“The returners worked really hard in the offseason playing club volleyball,” said Pontes-Christian. “I hope they continue and keep it going.”
One of those returners is Maryn Hall, who was conference co-MVP last season with Turlock’s Lauren Parker.
Hall had 18 kills in Thursday’s 25-10, 25-21, 26-24 win over Ripon Christian, a finalist in last year’s section D-4 final. She’s averaging 11 kills per contest.
Coming up for the Pride is a Tuesday contest in Merced against El Capitan, followed by a road trip Thursday to take on Ripon, the D-4 champion from last season. After that, it’s tournaments at Golden Valley (Merced) and in Clovis.
“When we began working together, I tried to give Ari as much control and free reign as possible,” said Pontes-Christian. “He’s younger than I am, and comes at the game differently. He brings a new energy and a new vision, and that’s never a bad thing.”
Pitman opened the Stockton tournament with a 25-22, 19-25, 15-12 win over College Park (Pleasant Hill), followed by a 27-25, 26-24 win over Lodi. The Pride then vanquished Pleasant Valley (Chico) 25-23, 25-13, and concluded the tourney with a 25-19, 25-14 win over Vanden (Fairfield).
Pitman's next home match will be Sept. 19, when it opens CCAL play against crosstown rival Turlock.
“Losing five starters was pretty tough,” said Amini. “And we didn’t have a freshman team last year, so the overall pool of players was smaller. But we just want to keep Pitman at as a high a level as possible, and make it a school where girls want to come to play volleyball.”
