After losing eight straight sets the Tigers roared all the way back to defeat the Golden West College Rustlers in an emphatic reverse sweep.
The Tigers bested the Golden West College Rustlers to snap a two-game losing streak and advance to 10-5 in Orange Empire Conference play.
The Riverside City College volleyball team was set to play against the Golden West College Rustlers Nov. 15 at Wheelock Gymnasium. RCC needed a win after a two-game losing streak to secure their playoff spot as the regular season dwindles.
Tigers’ standout sophomore outside hitter Kilyn Hayes has been out the last two games with an injury leading to serious struggles for Riverside losing every set since her injury.
In the first set, the Rustlers began to pile on point after point eventually taking a 21-10 lead.
RCC began to battle back but came up short with a final score of 25-18. RCC had lost another set.
“They just need to talk,” Tigers head coach Clara Lowden said. “It helps them play as a team, keeps the energy up, and helps them believe in themselves.”
The second set was more of the same as RCC gave up a 7-4 lead early in -the set and the Rustlers took full advantage of that. The Rustlers beat the Tigers in the second set 25-20 making RCC lose their eighth straight set.
However, the Tigers were not going to go down without a fight. In the third set, RCC put up a good fight and eventually came back from down 22-19 to win the set 25-22. In the fourth set, RCC fought hard and went back and forth with the Rustlers to win the set 25-23.
“I tell them to believe in themselves,” Lowden said. “We keep working hard in practice and that translates to the games. I just try to encourage them and keep them going until it’s over.”
The Tigers jumped to an early lead of 4-0 in the fifth and final set. However, Golden West started to fight back. RCC kept scoring but so did Golden West. But, try as they might, Golden West couldn’t finish the job and RCC won 15-11.
While RCC did struggle on offense, what really shined was the defense throughout the last three sets of the game. One leader on the defensive side of the ball was freshman libero, Tabitha Irish.
“We try to congratulate everyone and keep pushing,” Irish said. “We also notice our mistakes and we try to fix them as soon as we go into the huddle.”
“We really have to want it and that’s what keeps the energy up,” Irish added. “We are all really passionate about what is done on the court and we put it together because it always feels good to get a win.”
Another defensive leader in the game was freshman middle blocker Dani Luna who blocked almost every kill attempt made by Golden West.
“We knew that we had to win and work hard,” Luna said. “We worked on our communication during the last three sets and made sure no balls dropped. We played really well.”
“We also knew that a lefty was playing and she was going to try to go to the line,” Luna added. “So, I played the line and she kept hitting it right to me. Defense is uncommon for me so it’s good that it went well for me.”
The Tigers, after losing two straight and losing a consecutive eight sets on top of that, won three sets in a row to move to 10-5. They’ll look to win their final game against Santa Ana College on Nov. 19 in preparation for the playoffs.
