“Haikyuu!!’ Season 3 will be airing its 10th and final episode this weekend and it will finally put an end to the gruelling match between Karasuno High and Shiratorizawa Acadamy. The third season of the series only focused on one match, the match that will determine who gets to play in the nationals. The season has done well to deliver new sides, character developments, as well as the growth of the teams.
Though excited to finally play a match that could take them to the nationals, Karasuno started out with jitters as they finally face off with the most powerful team in the regionals. Karasuno has always been aware of Shiratorizawa’s record as well as their famous ace, Ushijima, who can deliver deadly spikes. Hinata who had an encounter with Ushijima before the match was excited to prove to what he can do in volleyball even for someone lacking in height.
The Karasuno volleyball team also is pressured yet delighted to find out that they finally have the school openly rooting for them as a student body has shown up to cheer on the team. The match was also highly anticipated as it is the first time a team with no recent great record gets into the ranks, let alone qualifies for the finals. Karasuno used to be one of the powerhouse teams but when the Little Giant and their famous coach left years ago, the team was neglected and eventually lost their touch.
The match kicked off with Shiratorizawa starting with powerful attacks, not letting their guard down even against the finals newbie Karasuno. This opened the eyes of the Karasuno team and realized the true strength of the opposing team. With this, Karasuno sacrifices the first set reading Shiratorizawa’s movements and experimenting with various strategies. They eventually got won two sets going through deuce after deuce, leading to the fifth and deciding set.
The third season saw an unexpected upgrade to the signature quick of Tobio Kageyama and Hinata Shoyo. Hinata as well has grown within the match as he finally became more than a decoy and was able to actually block attacks from Shiratorizawa with his monstrous high jumps. Kageyama was able to gauge his strength after being benched out in the fourth set over exhaustion.
Yu Nishinoya showed amazing progress when he proved he was no ordinary libero. He was able to read the direction of Ushijima’s deadly spikes and incorporated it with the team’s blocking strategy which enabled him to receive it so Karasuno could set. Nishinoya was highly reliable in the game as well as team captain Sawamura Daichi for their endless efforts saving the ball and keeping it in air.
The player who had the most development was Tsukishima Kei. He played for the team as one of the middle blockers but was not intent on giving his heart to volleyball. But after facing off with Shiratorizawa, a fire was ignited within him, making him realize that he actually enjoyed playing and wanted to give his best to win.
This match against Shiratorizawa has already paved a new world for Karasuno whatever the outcome will be. Starting again from scratch and with new advisors and coaches, the team has soared back to the top after endlessly fighting through several formidable opponents. “Haikyuu!” Season 3 Episode 10 titled “The Battle of Concepts” will be aired this weekend and it will finally show who prevails in the deciding set.
