Pirates sweep past Vaqueros, Roadrunners to kick off 2019

COSTA MESA -- It was a long, but successful day inside the Peterson Gym for the Orange Coast College women's volleyball team, as the Pirates swept past Glendale and Rio Hondo in Friday's three-team season opener.

In the opening match, OCC rolled to a 25-15, 25-20, 25-12 win over the Vaqueros, with Bailey Coffin leading the way with 16 hills and 12 digs. Joceline Martinez made the most of her Pirate debut and notched 11 kills to go along with a pair of digs and two solo blocks.

Mahina Kenoi added eight kills and 11 digs, while Lily Johnson added five kills and a team-best three solo blocks. Setter Thea Snider dished out 34 assists, while libero Terri Takita-Robins contributed 10 digs.

In the opening set, OCC and Glendale were tied a 9 before the Pirates went on a 13-2 run to run away from the Vaqueros. Coffin had six kills, while Rodriguez added three during that span.

Glendale opened the second set with an 8-4 lead and stayed close to the Pirates throughout, but OCC used a pair of mini-runs midway through the set to take the lead for good.

The third set was all OCC as the Pirates jumped out to a 14-6 lead thanks to several unforced errors by the Vaqueros and never looked back.

In the nightcap, the Pirates again took care of business and defeated Rio Hondo, 25-22, 25-19, 25-10, thanks to a balanced attack from their big four hitters. Kenoi led the way with 11 kills, 13 digs and three digs, while Coffin and Martinez each added 10 kills to go along with a combined 22 digs. Snider again dished out 34 assists to do along with 14 digs.

It looked like the opening set would be an easy one for OCC as the Pirates led 21-15, but the Roadrunners rallied late and used a 6-2 run to trim the deficit to 23-21. But from there, a pair of Kenoi kills gave the Pirates the 25-22 win and a 1-0 lead in the match.

In the second set, Coast trailed 8-7 before turning on the jets with a 9-0 run. Kenoi and Johnson combined for five kills over that nine-point run and in spite of another late rally by Rio Hondo, the Pirates held on for a 25-19 win.

There would be no late rallies for the Rio Hondo in the third set as OCC ran away from the Roadrunners with a 14-5 start. The lead grew to as many as 16 at 24-8 as the Pirates cruised to victory.

The Pirates will return to action on Wednesday at Citrus College (6 p.m.) before returning to the Peterson Gym on Saturday for another three-team tripleheader, featuring OCC vs. Santa Monica at 2 p.m. and OCC vs. College of the Desert at 6 p.m. (SMCC will also play COD at 4 p.m).