Corsairs Fall Short of Comeback Against the Falcons
The Corsairs played back-to-back matches Wednesday, Sept. 30, taking the victory in a sweep against Los Angeles Pierce College, but came up short in five sets against Cerritos College. The Falcons gained an early 2-0 lead, but The Corsairs won the next two sets, pushing the game to five sets where they fell short 15-13.
Mia Whitlock returned Wednesday after missing the past four games, but was on a pass only restriction. Coach Cammayo said he was pleased to have his leader back on the court. “Her presence alone matters a lot,” he said.
Cerritos held the advantage throughout the first set, as middle blocker Miriam Masanja and setter Jovie Navarro opened the set with a kill and ace to take the lead. Outside hitters Quincy Wilder and Nadeene Laalaai Taase responded with kills of their own, but the Corsairs were unable to take the lead, losing the first set 25-19.
The second set was back-and-forth, and with neither team gaining a major lead, the score was tied at 12-12. The Corsairs and Falcons traded blows in their longest rally of the night, with key plays from Whitlock and setter Lucy White.
White served as another leader for the Corsairs, expressing how proud she was of her team’s performance after the loss. “I’m super proud of how we played,” she said, “A lot of people refer to setters as the quarterbacks of the team and I think it’s important to have leadership skills,” she said.
Falcons opposite Jordin Lewis and outside hitter Ariana D. Luna Rosas recorded kills during a 6-0 run to take the second set 25-19.
SMC took advantage of the three minute break, coming out with an early 6-3 lead in the third set, which prompted head coach Ashleigh Atsaros to call a timeout.
Neither team took control until SMC’s middle blocker Anna Hockett recorded a block assist and kill in back-to-back plays that gave the Corsairs two points and tied the score at 22. Whitlock then found Taase for the kill to give SMC the third set 26-24.
Wilder recorded multiple kills during the fourth set, but Cerritos’ outside hitter Lulu Villar matched Wilder’s efforts throughout the set. The biggest lead for SMC in the fourth set was 15-12.
Cerritos then tied the score at 17-17 with a kill from Villar. Villar then recorded another kill to take the lead 20-19.
Taase recorded back-to-back kills to tie the score at 22. Each team went back and forth exchanging points until Hockett and Wilder recorded consecutive kills to win the fourth set 28-26.
The Falcons gained an early 12-7 lead in the fifth set, but the Corsairs cut the lead to three points after an ace from libero Isabella Maria Aragon. The game was paused after Atsaros called a timeout to discuss an issue with the referees regarding heckling from the crowd.
A few minutes after the discussion with the referees, assistant athletic director Theresa Thang was forced to ask the fans to leave the Corsair gym.
Wilder recorded another kill to make the score 11-13, but Lewis finished the job with a kill, finalizing the score at 15-12
Cammayo also said his team was at a disadvantage due to the back-to-back schedule, which was the result of L.A. Pierce being moved into the conference after Glendale Community College and West Los Angeles College lost their volleyball programs. Cammayo said giving up a potential playoff game was not an option for him.
Nonetheless, his team came back from a 2-0 deficit and almost took the win. “If we take care of things and do what we do best, we are a tough opponent for anyone,” Cammayo said.
The Corsairs will play on the road Friday night at 6 p.m. against Antelope Valley.