Pitman High gave the Hughson volleyball program its toughest challenge yet in 2026 in Tuesday night non-conference action in Turlock. Despite being the first team to win a set over the defending Division IV Sac-Joaquin Section champions, the Huskies were able to quickly recover and pull off a 3-1 (25-16, 20-25, 25-13, 25-5) victory.
The Huskies improved to 9-0 on the season, while the Pride, under first-year head coach Avery Carlson, dropped to 3-4.
“I just respect Pitman so much,” said Hughson head coach Sarah Beers. “They did a great job. They took a set from us this season when nobody else has, so kudos to them. They play so smart and so shifty. They change things up really, really well. They are just really good.”
Hughson’s 19 straight set wins to begin the season came against Merced, Gustine, Bret Harte, Hoover of Fresno, Hilmar, Oakdale, Tracy and Mariposa.
“We need big schools with great programs to challenge us like that because the TVL is such an incredible league with such incredible and respectable opponents,” Beers said. “There's just no way you can go into it without facing bigger, tougher opponents that can challenge you and prepare you for it. If we can be challenged, that's going to push our mental wall and our physical wall.”
Pitman pressured Hughson early by jumping out to a 5-0 lead in the first set, backed by two Mila Dias kills and a pair of Taylor Walker aces. But the Huskies had a flurry of aces of their own courtesy of senior Olivia Piazza, who tied the game at eight with three straight scoring serves and a block.
The Pride again jumped out to an early lead in the second set and were sure not to waste it, winning off eight kills and two blocks from junior Shanna Russell and four kills from Dias.
The third set again started with the Pride going up 4-1, but Hughson’s large cast of offensive weapons exploded for a scoring bonanza. Addison Yarbrough, only a sophomore yet one of Hughson’s top hitters during last year’s title run, had five kills while Piazza pitched in with another four kills and two blocks. She ended the set with a thunderous spike. Junior Izzy Piazza added three aces.
Izzy Piazza had another ace in the fourth and final set while Yarbrough added five kills. Sophomore Laina Loftin ended the match by scoring five of Hughson’s last seven points by way of two kills and three aces.
Hughson’s 22 aces on the night were one of the best marks by the team thus far this year.
Olivia Piazza’s name littered the final stat sheet with 12 kills, five aces and two blocks.
“When we set our goals at the beginning of the season, one of Olivia’s biggest was to be more consistent with serving because she is so strong,” Beers said “Last year, maybe she’d get one ace and then hit into the net or hit wide or hit long or something. So every practice, we are practicing serving because when you're consistent with that serve, you're going to get the aces. She is confident now and trusts herself in such a phenomenal way. Getting in that rhythm and trusting herself to just go and do what she was kind of doing it’s fun and so powerful.”
Yarbrough’s own power resulted in 13 kills, all but three in the final two sets to help pull out the win.
“Addie was amazing last year, and she just got sharper and sharper playing some high-level club volleyball over the summer,” Beers said. “We just want her to be confident in herself. That first set, we won. In that second set, we kind of got behind on the serves an we weren't able to run our hitters how we wanted to. Then that third set, we were like, ‘Okay, stop playing safe. Trust ourselves. You guys are a phenomenal team. Stop worrying about errors and just go and trust yourselves’ and as soon as they started playing free, it all just came together.”
The Huskies will be on the road Wednesday to play EL Capitan (2-0) in Merced before returning home Thursday to welcome the Bulldogs of Turlock High, who fell in straight sets to Hilmar on Tuesday night. Hughson’s run in the Trans-Valley League will begin next Tuesday, Sept. 8 at Sonora.
The Pride will be on the road for the rest of their non-conference slate, facing Atwater on Thursday, Ripon Christian next Wednesday and El Capitan next Thursday. Central California Athletic League play begins with a home match Sept. 21 against Modesto.
