Pirates pick up tough road win at Golden West

HUNTINGTON BEACH -- Before a packed and enthusiastic crowd inside the Golden West College Gym, the Orange Coast College women's volleyball team silenced the home fans and toppled the Rustlers in five grueling sets on Friday night in a pivotal Orange Empire Conference matchup.

With 15 kills provided by Emily Zapata-Reaves and 14 more from Paige Cutwright, the Pirates pulled out a 25-23, 20-25, 20-25, 25-19, 15-10 win over the Rustlers. The win keeps the Pirates (12-1 overall, 5-1 in the OEC) alone in second place, one win ahead of Irvine Valley (8-3, 4-2) and one behind first-place Cypress (15-1, 7-0). The Pirates and Chargers will battle it out for first place on Wedesday night inside OCC's Peterson Gym. With the loss, the Rustlers drop to 9-3 overall, 3-3 in conference play.

The Pirate offense was well balanced throughout the match, with Summer Hanks added 12 kills to the Coast attack, while Sara Enright contributed 10. The setting duo of Ellie Winter and Amanda Cueva combined for 46 assists, while libero Emily Payne anchored the defense with 25 digs. 

It was one of the best matches of the season for the Pirates (ranked No. 20 in the latest statewide polls) from the service area as Coast ripped 14 aces and kept the Rustlers off-balanced right from the get-go. 

Up front, the middle blockers came up big at the net and stuffed 14 blocks, compared to just six by the Rustlers. 

OCC's biggest test of the season comes this Wednesday night against the first-place Chargers. Winners of 14 straight since its lone loss to Pasadena City, Cypress (ranked fifth in the state) has rolled through the 2021 season thus far, losing just one set in OEC play (a four-set win over Fullerton) and have earned sweeps over tough teams, including Golden West and Irvine Valley, both on the road.

The majority of the Charger offense comes from the 1-2 punch of Rachel Gonzales (122 kills, 93 digs) and Tainea Allen (110 kills, 69 digs). Look for Alexis Flores (87 kills, 38 blocks), Amanda Risch (85 kills, 45 digs) and Vanila Pulu-Suliafu (73 kills, 123 digs) to see their share of offensive opportunities as well. Pulu-Suliafu also sets for the Chargers and has dished out 419 assists, while libero Zoe Munn anchors the defense with 165 digs.

For the Pirates, Hanks leads the offense with 155 kills to go along with 110 digs, while Zapata-Reaves (108 kills, 92 digs), Cutwright (99 kills, 33 total blocks) and Faith Jones (91 kills, 27 total blocks) close behind. Winter leads OCC with 396 assists, while Payne has been all over the gym floor for the Pirates with 248 digs.