Pirates slay Brahmas in three
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
LA Pierce (2-6) | 16 | 21 | 15 | 0 |
|
Orange Coast (7-1) | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
COSTA MESA -- The Orange Coast College men's volleyball team took care of business on Friday night en route to a straight-set win over visiting L.A. Pierce inside the Peterson Gym.
Gianluca Grasso notched a 11-kill, 12-dig performance to lead the Pirates past the Brahmas, 25-16, 25-21, 25-15, bring OCC's nonconference record to 7-1.
Adrian Faitalia added seven kills and 12 digs, while Jordan Hoppe contributed eight kills and four digs. In the middle, Will Donald and Austin Marriott combined for 13 kills on 20 attempts with just one error to go along with nine combined blocks.
Grasso and Hoppe got the offense going early in the first set as OCC grabbed a 14-7 lead on the Brahmas (2-6). From there, Grasso kept the Pirates out in front comfortably and closed the set out with four straight kills.
Pierce hung tough through the first half of the second set and pulled even with the Pirates at 14 before Coast pulled ahead with a 9-4 run, capped off with back-to-back blocks by Donald and Faitalia.
It was more of the same for the Pirates in the third set as the hosts turned an 8-8 tie into a commanding 15-8 lead, highlighted by a pair of kills by Tommy Casey and solo kills by Marriott and Donald.
The Brahmas, who were led by Raymond Barsemian with nine kills, tried to creep back into the set and trailed 18-14 before five striaght points by the Pirates helped close things out.
Coast will open up Pacific Coast Conference play on Wednesday night at home against Irvine Valley, beginning at 6 p.m.
