More than 60 student-athletes tried out for Ceres High’s girls volleyball program this fall.
Janelli Araiza, Isabella Bravo, Genesis Sio, Riley Gaskill, Emma Hernandez, Brianna Maravilla, Priya Martinez, Kamea Brown, Giada Stabille, Vinique Paularena and Gisele Arriola earned roster spots on the varsity team.
“I look for someone that is coachable, has energy and wants to be there,” Bulldogs’ seventh-year leader Kelly Heese said.
Ceres High’s experience and team chemistry could lead to a productive season.
“Of course everyone wants to go to playoffs,” Heese said. “That will be based on the effort the players put in.”
Araiza (Sr.), Bravo (Sr.), Sio (Sr.), Gaskill (Jr.), Hernandez (Jr.), Maravilla (Jr.), Martinez (Jr.) and Brown (So.) suited up for the Bulldogs last season.
“These girls have played together,” Heese said. “There’s a connection. They trust each other.”
Stabille (Sr.), Paularena (Jr.) and Arriola (So.) are newcomers.
Arriola and Paularena both competed at the junior-varsity level a year ago.
Stabille is a foreign-exchange student from Italy.
Sio was named to the Western Athletic Conference First Team in 2024.
Gaskill and Brown both earned second-team all-WAC honors.
Martinez was an honorable-mention selection.
Bravo, Sio and Brown have been named team captains for the 2025 squad.
“They’re the leaders on the court,” Heese said. “They take charge for what needs to be done.”
Ceres High amassed an 8-11 overall record and finished fifth in the Western Athletic Conference standings with a 6-8 mark last season.
The Bulldogs doubled their league win total from the previous year.
Ceres High beat Livingston and Johansen twice in conference play.
The Bulldogs split with Central Valley and Grace Davis.
Ceres High got swept by Beyer, Lathrop and Pacheco.
Lathrop, Beyer, Grace Davis and Pacheco placed first, second, third and fourth, respectively, in the WAC standings.
Central Valley, Johansen and Livingston took sixth, seventh and eighth.
Ceres High secured its last postseason berth in 2016.
“I do care about playoffs,” Heese said. “But I also care about other things. The unity of the team. Not just individualism. You’re only as strong as your weakest link. We have to all work together for the good of the team. I want everybody to do their job and be accountable for themselves.”
Crosstown-rivals Ceres High and Central Valley will compete in the same league for the second year in a row.
The Hawks moved from the Central California Conference to the WAC during the 2024-25 school year as part of the Sac-Joaquin Section’s conference realignment plan.
Ceres High and Central Valley both defended their home courts while facing off twice last fall.
Heese has ties to Central Valley as she served as head coach of the girls volleyball program from 2012-16 and boys team from 2016-21.
Central Valley’s girls squad had a 30-23 record in WAC play and advanced to the playoffs three times during Heese’s four-year tenure.
“I love seeing the support from both fan bases,” Heese said. “You don’t see that all year. I like the energy the rivalry brings to the girls. I wish that was something they brought to every single match.”
