Pirate rally to top Vikings in five; earn split at OCC Quad

COSTA MESA -- After a frustrating opener to Saturday's quad, the Orange Coast College men's volleyball team rallied late and topped defending state champion Long Beach City in five sets on Saturday night inside the Peterson Gym.

Led by the 1-2 punch of sophomore sluggers Jordan Hoppe and Justin Kam, the Pirates pulled out the decision against the Vikings, 26-24, 19-25, 19-25, 25-23, 15-11, in a rematch of last year's state finalists.

Hoppe finished with 17 kills, and 16 digs, while Kam added 16 kills for the Pirates (2-1), who overcame a loss to Santa Monica City College in four sets (15-25, 25-19, 27-25, 27-25) earlier in the day.

Colby Elder paced the Coast offense with 34 assists.

For the Vikings (2-2), who went 0-2 on Saturday after falling to IVC in three sets earlier in the day, Cyrus Fa'alogo led the offense with 27 kills. LBCC libero David Escobedo notched 19 digs, while setter Gary Trejo notched 55 assists.

The entire quad finale was a back-and-forth battle between two of the top teams in the state. In the opening set. Coast fell behind 19-17 before ripping off three straight points to grab its first lead of the night. A kill by Hoppe, followed by an ace by Chris Young and a block by the tandem of Kam and Bradley Hankus put OCC in front, 20-19.

Back-to-back points by the Vikings put them back in front, but the Pirates took advantage of some LBCC errors late and grabbed a 24-23 lead. A Fa'alogo kill tied the set at 24, but a Kim kill and a wide return attempt by the Vikings gave the opening set to Coast.

The next two sets were controlled by the Vikings as the Pirates managed just two leads over that stretch of play. In addition to Fa'alogo's steady play, Travis O'Gorman stepped up for seven kills during the second and third sets, helping LBCC take a 2-1 lead in the match.

Things didn't appear to be much different in the fourth set as LBCC rolled out to a 16-12 lead. But Coast found another gear and used a kill and a pair of blocks by Hankus to spearhead a 5-1 run to even things at 17.

Both teams traded points until late when, with the set tied at 22, freshman middle blocker Chris Orem used his 6-foot-9 frame to pick up a key block and put Coast in front, 23-22. A wide return by the Vikings made it 24-22 and after a Fa'alogo kill, Hoppe evened the match with a kill to end the fourth set, 25-23.

Trailing 4-2 early in the 15-point fifth set, Coast used a 6-2 run to grab an 8-6 lead at the change-over. Kills by Kam and Matt Ujkic as well as an ace off the arm of Zane Moothart highlighted the late surge by the Pirates.

Much like the other four sets, LBCC and OCC traded blows until late in the match. Finally, with Coast ahead, 12-11, OCC used three straight points to deliver the knockout blow. A kill by Kam made it 13-11, a missed return by the Vikings made it 14-11 and on match point, Hankus came up with a huge solo block to life the Pirates to victory.

Coast will be on the road for the next two matches -- at Santa Barbara on Wednesday (6 p.m.) and a rematch against the Vikings at LBCC on Feb. 15 (6 p.m.). The Pirates will return to the Peterson Gym on Feb. 22 against Miramar, also at 6 p.m.