Women's Volleyball News & Events - Pasadena City College

News: State No. 10 Women'S Volleyball Remains in Tie for First in SCC

Host Long Beach City College gave the state No. 10-ranked Pasadena City College women's volleyball team the test it needed Wednesday night as the Lancers overcame their first lost set in South Coast Conference play to defeat the Vikings in four games, 25-19, 25-23, 23-25, 25-21.

The Lancers (10-3 overall) remain in a three-way tie for first place in the SCC with No. 14 Mt. San Antonio and No. 16 El Camino. All three teams have 4-0 conference records. At least one of the teams will fall to second place on Friday when PCC hosts its rival from Torrance, two-time defending South Coast champion El Camino. Match time is 6 p.m. at Hutto-Patterson Gymnasium.

In the opening set, Pasadena jumped out to a 7-2 lead and never looked back. Long Beach got as close as 15-13, but two Vikings errors, an ace by PCC outside hitter Viridiana Gallardo and a kill by middle blocker Jackie Valle- Acosta gave PCC a commanding 19-13 advantage on its way to a 1-0 games lead.

Pasadena jumped ahead early in the second set before Long Beach rallied back. The Lancers were up 7-3 before the Vikings won six of the next eight points to tie the set at 9-9. Later in the set, a kill by LBCC's Jasmine Caldwell and a PCC error gave the Vikings their first lead at 13-12. A kill by Sami Uepa gave the Vikings a 23-21 lead, but three LBCC attack errors and a kill by middle blocker Megan Callen allowed Pasadena to win set 2.

Momentum seemed to be on PCC's side, but the Vikings didn't go down easy. Set 3 saw 13 ties with the Vikings finally coming out on top in the end. It wasn't easy though as Long Beach was up 23-20 and had to hold off the Lancers. An ace by PCC's Briana Hilton tied the set at 23 before Caldwell slammed down a kill and Gabriela Gonzalez sealed the Vikings' win with an ace to force a fourth set.

Set 4 was another nail bitter as neither team held a lead larger than two points until late. With the score 19-19, the experience of the Lancers came through. Three Long Beach errors allowed Pasadena to jump ahead while an ace from Lancers' libero Jennifer Estrada secured the match win.

For PCC, sophomore setter Kailey Faust had a tremendous all-around performance with four dump kills, three service aces, three assisted blocks, eight digs, and 38 set assists. Gallardo and Nora To'omalatai each netted 11 kills while Valle-Acosta added nine kills. Estrada recorded 16 digs and two aces.

For Long Beach (6-6, 2-2 in SCC play), Caldwell totaled a season-high 17 kills. The Vikings are a much-improved team, topping the state's "Best of the Rest" and just missing out on a ranking among the State Top 25 in this week's poll.

Game story highlights courtesy of Long Beach City College sports information

[Photo--Kailey Faust, a sophomore, helped the Lancers defeat Long Beach Wednesday night.]

Release Date: 10/11/2012
Contact: Robert Lewis , Sports Information
Phone: (626) 585-7018
Email: rmlewis@pasadena.edu