SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Ali Koumelis admits she did not talk for most of the first two years. But she made her presence known on the court with her play. Now, four years later, she is the unquestioned leader of the St. Francis volleyball program heading into the Sac-Joaquin Section final against Granite Bay Thursday night.

“She came into the program confident but shy,” said Head Coach Alynn Wright, who has led St. Francis to 12 section titles. “She knew her role as a freshman and sophomore. Then she went after it as a junior. Over the last two years, she has said this is my team and I am running the show.”

St. Francis enters Thursday’s game as the two-time defending section champions, playing in the section final for the seventh straight season. Koumelis has been a key part of each of the last two section championships.

“It would mean a lot if I could be part of three of them,” said Koumelis.

Koumelis, who has signed to play at Portland next season, is having her best season to date. She has averaged a career-best 9.6 assists per set, recording 824 on the season. She is just 23 assists short of her total from 2012.

Wright has seen the growth in her setter over the course of their four seasons together.

“The biggest thing I have seen with Ali is that she is a student of the game,” said Wright. “She knows the other team’s tendencies and she is like a coach on the court.”

And Coach Ali has the support from her teammates.

“I love the way she leads this team,” said senior Karson Bisharat. “She is super confident in all of us and she puts that on you. She makes sure that you know she is confident in you. She is an amazing player. I love playing with her.”

The Troubadours will face a tough challenge against Granite Bay, the No. 1 seed and overall No. 1 ranked team in California. The Grizzlies are a perfect 40-0 record on the season and have dropped just five sets all season (two to St. Francis).

“I am really excited,” said Koumelis. “I think it is really difficult to beat another team three times (in a season). So I think we have a really good shot. It is going to be really competitive.”

The St. Francis and Granite Bay teams are no strangers to each other. They met last season in both the section and NorCal finals and have faced each other twice in 2013 – the Foundation Game back in early September and at the Super 8 Invitational minus Kouemlis, who sat out with an ankle sprain. It is a matchup that has been anticipated all season.

“I want to go as far as possible,” said Koumelis. “I think this team can do that. We have been working really hard. I think we have a good chance of going all the way.”

It starts Thursday at the UC Davis Pavilion, a gym where knowledge can be helpful.

“UC Davis is tough gym to play in because it so big and it is dark,” said Wright. “It takes a little to get used to with the depth perception.”

The experienced Koumelis will set the tone for St. Francis. Shy no longer, she will tell you what she wants and is going to go after it and the first item on her list is title Thursday night.