In the final match of the regular season, Berkeley High School girls volleyball faced off in a heated battle against Bishop O’Dowd High School on Thursday Oct. 22, 2026. This game was important for both teams, with Berkeley fighting to keep a perfect 10-0 league record, and O’Dowd looking to claim the second place position in the West Alameda County Conference (WACC) league. Despite a competitive and intense game to celebrate their seniors, Berkeley ultimately lost two sets to three.
Before the game, BHS seniors Liliana Sanger, Neko Ikels, Rubi Silva, Josephine McKnett, and Corinna Leaf were honored in the Donahue Gym. Tensions between the two teams were high, as the Jackets had swept the O’Dowd Dragons in three sets just a few weeks prior.
The teams split the first four sets 2-2, heading into the fifth and final set.
A kill from O’Dowd gave the Dragons the lead which quickly turned into a 6-3 deficit for Berkeley. Despite the Jackets’ attempts to shrink the deficit after timeouts, they ultimately lost the final set 15-8. “I feel like we had a lot of momentum in the first set, and then it kind of lulled because we got comfortable after winning,” Ikels said.
Despite the loss, the night was meaningful for the team’s senior night. For BHS sophomore Hanna-Mae Huard, the seniors on the squad have a big influence on her. “I’ve grown very close with them (and) they’re some of my favorite people. I look up to them,” she said.
As the Jackets head into the post-season, they have a few things they are looking to improve, “We have to clean it up and be a bit more efficient on offense, better on defense, (and have) better blocks,” Kimberlee Rock, BHS head coach said.
BHS is seeded as #2 for the North Coast Sectional (NCS) Division 1 championship after winning WACC for the second year in a row. Their regular season finished with a 17-4 record, marking this season as one of their most competitive and promising in Jacket history. They hope to go far into the NCS tournament and come out with another title for their season.