On Friday, April 5, Mt. SAC’s beach volleyball team had plenty to celebrate other than the rain stopping before game time.
With their second 5-0 sweep in a row and fifth consecutive win, SAC is in prime playoff form ready to finish their season on a high note.
Friday was also a special game for four individuals: sophomores Zyra Green (5), Angelina Griego (20), Liz Ortiz (21) and Capri Salmon (22) were honored and presented flowers prior to the game for Sophomores Day marking the end of their junior college athletics career before transferring to a four-year university.
SAC nearly replicated the exact results from their March 1, 5-0 win against the Roadrunners in Palm Desert where they did not lose a set. However, the Roadrunners were able to take a set off the 4s pairs but would eventually lose in three sets.
The 1s pairs of sophomore Zyra Green (5) and freshman Andrea Brewer (4) cruised to a two-set sweep of sophomore Melanie Hernandez (4) and freshman Stacie Alexander (14), 21-6 and 21-14.
As they have done all season long, sophomores Liz Ortiz (21) and Capri Salmon (22) handily beat the Roadrunner 2s pair of freshmen Alexia Siani-Rader (1) and Ashley Estrada (2), 21-13 and 21-9, to continue their winning streak since Feb. 28.
Freshmen Freida Lei (13) and Eva Becerra (14) kept their win-streak alive by dusting sophomore Ashley Amidei (24) and freshman Veronica Walsh (21), 21-6 and 21-6. Lei (13) and Becerra (14) have only lost once the entire season against the Long Beach Vikings nearly a month ago on March 8.
The last of the SAC sweeps came during the 3s pair matchup between SAC’s Angelina Griego (20), freshman Candace Ceballos (11), Roadrunner sophomore Liana Whitley (3) and freshman Sarah Neito (11), where Ceballos (11) and Griego (20) battled through the first set, 21-14, and closed the match out with a 21-8 second-set win.
On to the match of the day.
The fight of the freshmen 4s – Kyra Miller (10) and Sam Parks (25) faced off against Itzel Solorio (23) and Savannah Bush (13). Miller (10) and Parks (25) trailed 17-14 in the first set before a 7-2 run sparked a 21-19 first-set comeback. Prior to the 7-2 run, head coach Samantha Neely called for a timeout and gave Miller (10) and Parks (25) a simple message – we’re not losing this game.
Though Miller (10) and Parks (25) were able to snatch an early one-set lead, Solorio (23) and Bush (13) would not go down without a fight. With neither team able to build a lead bigger than five points, this second and pivotal set would go to extras with the Roadrunners able to steal a 20-22 second-set win.
With all eyes on court four, it came down to a third and final set.
Miller (10) and Parks (25) would jump to a commanding 8-2 lead through two side changes. But like the second set, the Roadrunners would not go down quietly with a 4-1 run of their own before the third side switched.
9-6 in favor of SAC.
Sparked by two huge kills, one by Miller (10) and the other by Parks (25), SAC would be the first to double digits and never look back to secure a 15-10 final set win and lock up a 5-0 SAC win overall.
Neely after the game was proud of the way the team handled their business early and gutted out an important 4s pair win and highlighted that every set matters to the team regardless if they already have the overall win in hand.
“Obviously we focused a lot on the team win, but every single individual pair win is important as well for the post-season individually, so it’s super awesome that we were able to get a 5-0 win,” Neely said.
She also emphasized the resilience and grit of the team being adaptable no matter who they are paired with.
“We’ve had four different players compete at the 4s seed and Sam and Kyra have stepped into that role and have been able to build from each of their previous sets,” Neely said. “I think it was really fun just to watch them compete and be supported by everyone around them and rise to the occasion in a pressure situation.”
After the win on Friday, SAC sets their sights immediately to the South Coast Conference title as Mt. SAC and the Long Beach Vikings are tied atop the standings with records of 7-1 and the El Camino Warriors sitting alone in third at 6-2.
SAC will conclude its regular season on the road against the aforementioned Long Beach Vikings and El Camino Warriors on Friday, April 12. The winners of the two-game meet will capture the SCC title and punch their ticket into the CCCAA state championship.
