This story has been updated on Sept. 19 to correct sophomore Tabitha Irish to freshman Tabitha Irish.
The Tigers soundly defeated the College of the Desert Roadrunners to end the preseason 6-4 before Orange Empire Conference play begins.
The Riverside City College volleyball team matched up against the College of the Desert Roadrunners on Sept. 18. The stage was set for RCC to set the tone going into the regular season.
The Tigers got off to a hot start in the first set taking an early lead of 7-4. However, the Tigers kept fighting and eventually came back to win the first set 25-23. The Tigers, primarily led by sophomore outside hitter Kilyn Hayes who had 15 kills, dominated on the offensive side of the ball on the way to a win over the Roadrunners in four sets.
“I need to prove to my team that I can be relied on when getting kills and being able to help put the team in any way,” Hayes said. “I focus on getting kills in order to help. I tell myself ‘nothing drops’ so that I know, whether I have to throw my body into people, chairs, etc, I will do what is needed to prevent the other team from getting a point.”
Hayes embraced a leadership role throughout the game by establishing faith in the rest of her team.
“I tell the rest of the team to take a deep breath and to take a step back,” she said. “I tell them to stay calm and collected and make sure that everyone is on the same page. I also make sure we’re having fun because if we’re not having fun on the court, we’re not gonna win.”
In the second set, The Tigers started off hot and never looked back finishing the set with a final score of 25-15. RCC went on another offensive charge led by freshman libero Tabitha Irish.
“I have nothing to lose out there,” Irish said simply. “I have no reason to not go hard and leave it all on the court at the end of the game.”
Irish helped Hayes lead the team with three service aces.
“I make sure to have encouragement and support when I go back into the huddle,” Irish said. “I tell my team that it’s okay to have trust in themselves and their teammates and I’m really good at making sure we all trust each other.”
When the third set began, the Roadrunners seemed to have figured something out after winning the third set with a final of 25-9.
However, that was all for COD as the fourth and final set was won by the Tigers at 25-14.
Head coach Clara Lowden was elated to have such a dominant performance.
“We keep building, and we keep working on everything in practice and making sure we have confidence every single time,” Lowden said. “Same as every game, preseason or conference, focusing on the opponent’s specialties and taking the season one game at a time.”
With the Tigers having a solid performance to wrap up the preseason, the stage had been set for OEC play.
