BAINBRIDGE – The North Kitsap Vikings raided the Rock and spirited away a 3-0 win from the Spartans in girls varsity volleyball during the season opener for both teams.

North Kitsap prevailed 25-20, 25-17 and 25-21 in three sets marked by frantic sprawls, extended nail-biting volleys and balls bounced into the rafters.

The Spartans started their season with the non-conference matchup against their foes from the other side of the bridge.

“It was a good learning experience for us,” noted Spartan Coach Holly Rohrbacher.

The BHS squad came in short-handed, thanks to some mishaps on-court and off. The Spartans played without their starting middles; Grace Cisneros is out for three weeks thanks to an injury from the week before, and Sydney Maria was unable to compete.

More noticeable: the miscues during game play.

“We made a lot of hitting and serving errors. We’ll be working on limiting unforced errors,” Rohrbacher added.

Still, it was an exciting non-conference matchup for those who had made their way to Paski Gymnasium, for Spartans and Vikings alike. The contest thrilled fans from both sides, which may help Rohrbacher’s goal of packing the Spartans’ home court with more of the BHS faithful.

“We’re hoping again that we get some fan support,” she said.

“Volleyball is a fun sport to watch,” Rohrbacher said, and added that the Spartan team is mightily encouraged by its loud fans.

The future of the Spartan program also depends on younger volleyball players to come out and see their fellow islanders playing at the program’s highest level, she said.