The Palo Alto High School volleyball team beat Monta Vista tonight in four sets, (25-20), ( 25-8), (21-25) and (25-15), to improve to a 3-0 record in league.

The Vikings traded blows with the Matadors throughout the set, with neither team able to pull ahead. Paly would trail 8-ll, halfway through the set, after an ace from Monta Vista. Mistakes were a factor for both teams and would cost the Matadors their lead as kills from outside hitters Shelby Knowles (’13) and Becca Raffel (’14) put the Vikings back on top 18-14. The rest of the set continued with back and forth play, before two errors by Monta Vista and back-to-back aces from outside hitter Anna Dukovic (’15), closed out the set 25-20 in favor of the Vikings.

Offense became a problem in the beginning of the second set for the Matadors, as Paly jumped ahead early with a 5-0 lead. A steady contribution of points from Knowles, Raffel and middle blockers Lauren Kerr (’14) and Bella Graves (’14) kept Paly ahead during the entirety of the set. Two aces from setter Molly Fogarty (’15) and two kills from outside hitter Jade Schoenberger (’15) would help secure a commanding 25-8 win in the set.

Errors again would prove costly for Monta Vista, after its 6-3 lead was cut to one point by back-to-back out of bounds balls. However, Paly would return the favor, trailing the whole set until a point from Knowles tied it up at 13. Monta Vista again capitalized on the Vikings’ mistakes, eventually gaining a 20-15 lead before Paly head coach Dave Winn called a timeout. The offensive woes for Paly continued until a rally fell short, allowing Monta Vista to win 25-21.  Despite the loss, Knowles had three kills in the set.

“I think our passing got a lot worse [in the third set] and we started making un-smart decisions,” Knowles said.

The fourth and final set of the game began slowly for both teams, but strong defense and more Monta Vista errors gave the Vikings a solid 15-6 lead. The Matadors battled back with a couple of rallies, but defense from Paly thwarted any chances at a comeback and locked up the set, 25-15.

Winn believed that his team got complacent after the second set win.

“We completely let down,” Winn said. “We got overconfident, didn’t fight and didn’t do the things we did in the first two sets. Teams are good enough in this league that if you let up a little, they’ll beat you.”

The Vikings will play at Mountain View on Thursday at 6:45 p.m.