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The San Diego Mojo started 1-6 in their inaugural season before going 12-6 the rest of the way and advancing to Pro Volleyball Federation semifinals, where they fell in five sets to eventual champion Omaha.
Year 2 has started better. After returning only three players and integrating a mix of veterans and rookies, the Mojo are 3-3 through their first six matches. They were above .500 before falling to the Atlanta Vibe (4-2) in four sets on Thursday night at Viejas Arena.
While pushing for improvement, second-year coach Tayyiba Haneef-Park knows patience is required. The team has 22 regular-season games remaining; six of the PVF’s eight teams have records somewhere between 4-2 and 2-4.
“This is a learning phase, how to be a team, getting our lineups together, how to be consistent, learning other teams and their attackers,” Haneef-Park said. “Every day we step onto the court, we become a stronger unit. We hadn’t faced Atlanta before and there are some things we saw that exposed some of our weaknesses. So, we get to go back to the learning lab…It’s kind of a science experiment: seeing what works, what we need to improve so when the second time comes around, the third time, we are ready to peak at the right time.”
This season’s team is built around setter DaYeong Lee, middle blockers Ronika Stone and Lauren Page, outside hitters Kendra Dahlke and Jenaisya Moore, libero Shara Venegas and opposite Regan Pittman, who missed Thursday’s match with injury. Rookie middle blocker Leyla Blackwell is a La Jolla High School graduate who helped lead the University of San Diego to the national semifinals in 2022.
Serving has been an issue so far this season. The Mojo committed nine service errors on Thursday, while the Vibe dominated at the net with a 63-45 edge in kills and a 9-6 edge in blocks.
The Mojo’s next challenge comes Sunday, when they take on the Grand Rapids Rise (3-3) on the road. Grand Rapids is led by reigning PVF Player of the Week Carli Snider, who had a season-high 22 points along with 17 kills in last Sunday’s win over the Columbus Fury.
Seals return home to face Saskatchewan
The San Diego Seals of the National Lacrosse League host Saskatchewan (5-2) on Saturday at Pechanga Arena looking to snap a two-game losing streak.
The Seals (3-4) have been outscored 78-77 while playing several physical, closely contested games. They’re coming off of 12-10 losses at Vancouver and Las Vegas.
Saturday is “Mexican Heritage Night” featuring a pregame tailgate party, Lucha Libre wrestling and special food items. The game will air locally on KUSI-TV and stream on ESPN+.
Elsewhere
The San Diego Sockers of the Major Arena Soccer League are 9-1 and have won nine straight heading into Sunday’s 6:05 p.m. match against the Tacoma Stars (2-6-2) at Frontwave Arena in Oceanside. The Sockers have won two of their three matches against Tacoma so far this season.
• The San Diego Legion of Major League Rugby play at Rugby LA in a 3:30 p.m. exhibition on Saturday and host the Utah Warriors for another exhibition next Friday. First-year coach John Manenti leads a group of 11 newcomers into the 2025 regular season. The Legion open play Feb. 16 at Torero Stadium with a match against the Seattle Seawolves.
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