Programs to Watch Spring 2021: Bogota
Bogota High School took the NJSIAA Tournament and made it to the semifinals of the NJSIAA Tournament of Champions last season. They finished with an impressive 30-5 overall record, but that shouldn’t come as a surprise; this program hasn’t finished…
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Continue ReadingBogota High School took the NJSIAA Tournament and made it to the semifinals of the NJSIAA Tournament of Champions last season. They finished with an impressive 30-5 overall record, but that shouldn’t come as a surprise; this program hasn’t finished under .800 in the last decade. Five seniors graduated, but eight competent returners are back to keep the momentum going. A few that are worth mentioning are setter Amber Vasquez ‘21, outside hitter Kiara Polanco Kiara Polanco OH Bogota | 2021 State NJ ‘21, setter Mia Pimental ‘23, and libero Gianna Estevez Gianna Estevez DS/L Bogota | 2023 State NJ ‘23.
On the surface, the loss of outside hitter Nylene Mateo looks like it will be a huge deficit for the future of this program. Her 526 kills, 28 blocks, 124 digs, and 44 aces were instrumental to Bogota’s success. We could have said the same thing about MB Leila Ksiyer last year, Libero Lisabeth Suarez the year before, or even OH Samantha Gioiosa the year before that. The point is, Bogota’s coaching staff knows how to use and mold athletes to minimize gaps in the program from one season to the next.
When one group of seniors finally makes their way through the program, there are a handful of talented athletes waiting in the wings to finally have their standout season. One I am most looking forward to is Amber Vazquez Amber Vazquez S Bogota | 2021 State NJ . This setter will be starting her senior season with a career total of 1000 assists. She plays just as well as – if not better than – her older sister Alyssa, who finished her career with nearly 1,600 assists. With that metric to go off of, plus the excellent hitters returning to the squad, we can expect that Amber will surpass her 734 assists from last season (pandemic permitting, of course).
Outside hitter Kiara Polanco Kiara Polanco OH Bogota | 2021 State NJ is also an exciting prospect returning as a senior this season. She finished last season with 264 kills and 44 digs having split court time with freshman outside Gyanna Hernandez. Hernandez made a fair impression with 6 kills, 10 blocks, 10 digs, and 4 service points. Based on Bogota’s history, Hernandez is sure to take over the role as the second-option outside while Polanco rises to replace Mateo as the first-option power outside.
Middle blocker Angelique Caceres graduated in 2020 to leave a space open in the rotation, but Bogota’s powerhouse middle is the young returner Ashanna Caviness Ashanna Caviness MB Bogota | 2023 State NJ from the class of 2023. In her first season with the program, Caviness showed up with 74 kills and an astounding 72 blocks! With such a solid defense behind her, any amount of hitting she can do will simply put her over the edge.
Anything that gets over or around her block will be in the competent hands (or probably platform) of returning sophomore libero Gianna Estevez Gianna Estevez DS/L Bogota | 2023 State NJ . In her first year, Esteves racked up 176 digs 22 assists, and 16 service points. This was all in the second half of the season after senior libero Julianne Corniel was moved to the right side. She fit right into this role and will continue to take charge here in the future.
The future of this program is also supported by the return of sophomore setter Mia Pimental. She had 206 assists and 26 service points last season playing under Vazquez, so it’s clear that Pimental will be a tremendous replacement for when Vazquez graduates this spring. Three athletes rostered as right sides will also be returning to the program this year: Angelina Buhler class of 2023, Nicole Cotes class of 2022, and Carmen Cruz class of 2021. Whether they remain in these positions remains to be seen, but we can be sure that the Bogota coaching staff will use these versatile athletes to fill in any gaps last year’s seniors left behind.