OUT OF THE WOODS: Princeton High girls’ volleyball player Charlotte Woods sets a ball in a game last fall. Last Wednesday, junior star Woods contributed seven kills and eight digs as PHS defeated Woodbridge 2-0 (25-15, 25-21). The Tigers, who improved to 12-0 with a 2-0 (25-18, 25-8) win over Princeton Day School last Monday, play at Immaculate Heart on October 5 and at Notre Dame on October 7. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

As the Princeton High girls’ volleyball team hosted Woodbridge last Wednesday, Charlotte Woods didn’t take long to get into the flow.

“I feel like I was able to warm up and open up and take some really harder hits,” said junior outside hitter Woods. “The sets by Lois [Matsukawa] were awesome, — that made those big hits possible.”

The Tigers got into the groove collectively in the first set, jumping out to a 16-6 lead on the way to winning it 25-15.

“The team is super great so we have a lot of great players and a lot of great servers,” said Woods. “It is nice to have that gap in the start, it really lets us have fun in the front row and take some more aggressive swings and do some more plays. The support of the team really makes that happen.”

In the second set, PHS fell behind 10-4 before rallying to win 25-21 to clinch a 2-0 victory.

“When you get in a lull where it feels like balls aren’t landing, it takes one big push and it is a really big team effort from everyone to find the gap somewhere to put the ball,” said Woods, who ended up with seven kills and eight digs in the win. “I think we did that; coming back, getting our serves in. crawling back and finishing the set.”

Coming off a 2023 season which saw the Tigers win the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Group 3 state title, PHS is off to a perfect start this fall as it improved to 12-0 with a 2-0 (25-18, 25-8) win over Princeton Day School last Monday and is ranked No. 1 in the state by NJ.com.

“This season has been going really well for us, we definitely have a lot more tough games coming up,” said Woods. “We have Williamstown (ranked No. 2 by NJ.com) coming up, we have some new ones on the schedule as well that we are looking forward to. We are really looking to just playing our best every game.”

In reflecting on the program’s emergence as a dominant force, Woods pointed to the players’ chemistry and their year-round commitment to volleyball.

“Through the last three years, we have just grown even closer as a team,” said Woods. “I think outside of the season when we play our club seasons, we have really put in a lot of work. We all come back better than the year before which really progresses the team even more. It is fun to show off all of the new things that we have learned throughout the club season.”

For Woods, getting into the club scene helped her develop a love for the game.

“In middle school when I moved to Princeton, that is when I joined Princeton volleyball club and started playing for a club team,” said Woods. “That is where I met Kaelin (fellow PHS junior star Kaelin Bobetich), so we have been playing together for a long time, probably since seventh grade. It has been a lot of fun.”

PHS head coach Patty Manhart had fun watching her team click in the first set against Woodbridge.

“Things we did well in the first set were serving, serve receive —we just gave ourselves opportunities,” said Manhart. “The girls pointed out they were only putting up one block on the outside so that was all to make our hitters more effective. The first set communication was good. We played Princeton volleyball, we were in system.”

Things didn’t go so well for PHS early in the second set, but the Tigers were able to work things out on their own.

“When we go behind a couple of points, I am always debating whether to call a timeout or not call a timeout,” said Manhart, who got 10 kills and five digs in the win from Naomi Lygas with Matsukawa contributing 18 assists and five digs and Bobetich chipping in five kills and seven digs. “At the end of the day, I have the confidence in the team that they will figure out how to side out. I don’t have anything to say that they don’t already know. They just know when the job isn’t getting done and what they are able to do. In situations like that, I am confident in the girls being able to do what is needed and they did. They figured it out. I feel like not calling timeouts shows the confidence. It is in our control, we can fix this and then they do. Being able to rally is important but let’s not get into a hole in the first place.”

Manhart credits Woods with bringing plenty of confidence to the front row.

“In the offseason when she is playing defense, she doesn’t get to hit as much,” said Manhart. “Then she comes into this season and she is a hitter. You can tell that she really enjoys that job of being in the front row, scoring points, putting the ball away. I love seeing her thrive in that spot. She is smart, she has a great arm and get up. With one blocker on the outside we are going to work around them. She did just that.”

The play of senior Anya Haeberli and sophomore Carmen Barbosa also made a difference against Woodbridge.

“Anya is doing a really nice job reacting in the middle, “said Manhart. “Something we have been focused on is if we get a block touch, can we turn and find the ball. If we are out of system, can we still set a play and Carmen has been ready. The middles have the court IQ to be able to play in those out of system moments when we should still be able to keep the ball up. Those little extra touches, making something happen is really nice to see from both of the middles.”

While Manhart has her eye on a state title repeat, she knows her squad has work to do over the rest of the regular season.

“I just want to get us to November 17 (the state final). I am so ready,” said Manhart, whose team plays at Immaculate Heart on October 5 and at Notre Dame on October 7. “It feels like this is the start. It is nice how we are progressing. I understand the regular season is still important. I am impatient but I am happy with how we have started 100 percent. There are definitely things we can work on, we can focus on prior to November that we will do. We will use this time for that.”

Woods, for her part, is looking forward to another big postseason run.

“We are definitely hoping to make it as far as we did last year,” said Woods. “Hopefully we see some great teams when we make it to postseason. Hopefully we will win the BCSL (Burlington County Scholastic League) again. It is fun to play those BCSL games where you know so many girls on the other teams.”