SLO volleyball rivalry is extra special this year: 4 players are headed to same university

Mission Prep’s bleachers were filled with pink shirts last week for the annual “SLOtown Showdown” rivalry volleyball game between the Royals and the San Luis Obispo Tigers that also served as a showcase for some of the county’s top high school talent.

In the Sept. 26 matchup between two strong local volleyball programs, the Tigers ultimately came out on top 3-0 and showed why they are the No. 1 team in the Central Section, according to MaxPreps.

This year’s contest, however, was special for another reason: It featured a total of four players who have committed to continuing their volleyball careers at UC Davis.

Tigers’ senior middle blocker Tea Aebischer will be playing beach volleyball at UC Davis. Joining her are Royals’ senior outside hitter Ella Hais and senior middle Hannah Garrett.

San Luis Obispo junior setter Laela Burgess is also committed to play for the Aggies, but she will be joining the indoor volleyball team.

“We’re really fortunate here in SLO to have such a big volleyball community,” Tigers’ head coach Kennedy Meaney said.

Not only are the players linked due to their college commitments, some are also teammates on local club volleyball teams.

On the Mission side, Hais plays for Flight Academy, while Garrett plays for 805 Elite. Their teammate Ella Blair, who is committed to play volleyball at Wesleyan, also plays for 805 Elite.

Hais and Garrett also play beach volleyball for the Pismo Beach Volleyball club.

For the Tigers, Burgess is a member of 805 Elite as well, and Aebischer plays for Pismo Beach Volleyball Club.

“We all grew up together in the same volleyball community, and now we’re going to play at the D1 level,” Burgess said after their win over the Royals. “It’s a really cool opportunity and just raises the playing level.”

In the recent rivalry match, the Royals got out to a fast start in the first set with the home crowd behind them, but the Tigers rallied back for a 25-23 win. Burgess helped turn the tide when she faked a set to a hitter before dumping the ball over the net for a point midway through the set.

Aebischer capped the set off with an ace down the line when the score was 24-23.

The Tigers dominated the second set 25-7 before capping off the match with a 25-19 win.

Although the Tigers came out with the straight-set win, Mission Prep Head Coach Lyndsey Weisenberg pointed out that when her team was “calm and confident,” they played better.

“You could see the difference and the way we were serving and make sure we were staying in system defensively,” Weisenberg said.

Tigers aiming for postseason success

The Tigers have a well-established history of success in girls volleyball.

SLO won the Division 4 State Championship in 2018, and the Tigers were the undefeated CCAA Mountain League champion in 2021, 2022 and 2023.

However, since the championship run five years ago, the team was moved into the Division 1 Central Section and haven’t made a deep run in the CIF playoffs since.

That can all change this season, and Kennedy said that these players specifically “bond really well together.”

“They’ve been playing together for a few years now, so it’s a special group,” Kennedy said. “Lots of talent, but also just a lot of hard work.”

One strong sign that the Tigers have the potential for postseason success is they won the annual SLOtown Showdown Tournament, which is the first time in the school’s 37 years that the Tigers won their own tournament.

The two-day tournament held in early September brought the best teams from San Luis Obispo, Clovis and Los Angeles to San Luis Obispo High School, and the Tigers managed to come out on top.

Leading the way for the Tigers’ strong season are Burgess and Aebischer.

Burgess is a standout setter, who at numerous times turned what seemed like an out-of-system ball into a point for the Tigers. Often times her target was Aebischer or middle Ava Van Brasch.

Kennedy described Burgess as “the most dedicated volleyball player” she’s ever met.

“She is constantly watching film to try and make herself better,” Kennedy said. “She’s lifting weights on her own. She does every little thing to make her as good as she is.”

At the middle blocker spot, Aebischer is athletic enough to cover the entirety of the net to contest hitters. Kennedy mentioned that her defense is strong enough to even play defense in the back row.

“She’s just that good of a volleyball player. Every time she touches the ball she makes a difference,” Kennedy said.

A strong volleyball community

Kennedy credits the youth player development leading to talented players taking the court on both sides.

The two main local clubs — 805 Elite, founded by Cal Poly head volleyball coach Caroline Walters, and Flight Academy — have teams from 12U to 18U. Many of the players who take the court at the varsity level on both sides play some version of club volleyball.

That creates situations like the ones in the SLOtown Showdown where multiple players have played with and against each other for years before becoming teammates at the college level.

“These girls have crossed paths over and over again as they’ve grown up in the sport,” Weisenberg said. “It makes it a cool rivalry. It’s one of those beautiful things about being apart of a small town is that we get to constantly battle back and forth.

“These girls know each other and love each other but can battle hard on the court and then hug each other afterwards.”

The Tigers are currently 22-2 overall and 9-0 in league play while the Royals stand at 13-9 and 6-3 in the Mountain League.

Next up, the Tigers play a non-league game against Bakersfield Christian Monday at 6:15 p.m. at home while the Royals take on St. Joseph Monday at 6 p.m.