Former SHP volleyball teammates turn rivals

Jesse Ebner and Sarah Daschbach once were volleyball teammates at Sacred Heart Prep. In fact, they helped the Gators reach the CIF Division IV state championship match in 2010.

This past Saturday, however, the former teammates were rivals — Daschbach playing for Princeton and Ebner for Yale.

Ebner came out on top as the Bulldogs took a bite out of the Tigers, 25-21, 16-25, 25-14, 25-15 to remain unbeaten (5-0) in Ivy League action.

Ebert played in three of the four sets and managed six kills while hitting .545 as Yale improved to 11-3 overall. Daschbach played in every set and had nine digs with an ace as Princeton dropped to 2-3 in league (6-9 overall).

Earlier in the weekend, Yale defeated Penn, 25-18, 25-14, 25-27, 25-21, as Ebner contributed 12 kills on 23 swings for .522 hitting. Ebner was the reigning Ivy League Player of the Week.

In other college volleyball action on the weekend:

Palo Alto High grad Melanie Wade helped Washington to a pair of Pac-12 victories as the Huskies (5-1, 13-1) moved to No. 6 nationally in the American Volleyball Coaches Association Top 25 poll.

Wade had four kills and hit .333 in a sweep of No. 16 Arizona State and had six kills and five block assists in a 3-1 win over Arizona.

In Stockton, Paly grad Kimmy Whitson was busy in a pair of West Coast Conference matches for Pacific. In a 3-1 win over Loyola Marymount, Whitson had 42 assists, six kills, seven digs and three blocks. Earlier, in a loss to Pepperdine, Whitson finished with 49 assists and 12 digs. The Tigers are 3-4 in league (10-8 overall).

At Connecticut College, Menlo School grad Anelise Hohl and Paly grad Caroline Martin helped the Camels sweep Bates College on Saturday. Hohl had eight kills, three block assists and hit .500 while Martin added eight kills and five digs.

In Naperville, Ill., Palo Alto grad Shelby Knowles helped Wheaton College go 4-0 and win the Tiffany Robinson Memorial Tournament. In her best effort, Knowles produced 14 kills and 15 digs in a second-round sweep of Finlandia. In the finals against Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Knowles had eight kills. She finished the tourney with 37 kills.

Football

A showdown in the Mountain West Conference this Saturday between visiting Nevada-Las Vegas (2-0, 4-2) and host Fresno State (2-0, 5-0) also will bring together two former local prep standouts — Jerry Rice Jr. of UNLV and Davante Adams of Fresno State.

One of the last additions to the 2013 Rebels was Rice, the son and namesake of the legendary NFL receiver. He graduated from Menlo School and went on to letter three times at UCLA as a wide receiver and special teams contributor.

However, he took advantage of the NCAA rule allowing student-athletes to transfer after graduating early to use a final year of eligibility at another school while pursuing a master’s. Rice suited up for the first time on Aug. 9.

After catching just nine passes as a Bruin, Rice has matched that number as a Rebel, including grabbing six for 35 yards in his UNLV debut at Minnesota. He has nine receptions for 66 yards (7.3 average).

Adams, a graduate of Palo Alto High, is one of the nation’s top receivers. The redshirt sophomore has 52 receptions for 496 yards and seven touchdowns. He was the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week two weeks ago.

Women’s soccer

Sacred Heart Prep grad Elizabeth Weisman of Atherton scored two goals to help Harvard defeat Cornell, 7-2, in Ivy League action Saturday in Ithaca, N.Y.

Weisman scored both her goals during a six-goal barrage that helped the Crimson remain atop the standings at 3-0 (7-3-2 overall).

Men’s tennis

Menlo School grad Andrew Ball and Paly grad Nicky Hu picked up victories for Harvard during the Texas A&M Challenge last weekend in College Station, Texas.

Ball, a freshman, won a singles match against Texas A&M, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4), and helped win a pair of doubles matches. Hu, a sophomore, helped win a doubles match.

By Palo Alto Online Sports

By Palo Alto Online Sports

By Palo Alto Online Sports