Pirates sweep past Dons for 14th win of season
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Santa Ana (6-14, 4-9) | 22 | 8 | 16 | 0 |
|
Orange Coast (14-6, 8-4) | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
COSTA MESA -- The Orange Coast College women's volleyball team picked up its 14th win of the season with a three-set sweep over visiting Santa Ana College on Wednesday night inside the Peterson Gym.
Lulu Utterback had 12 kills to lead the Pirates (14-6, 8-4 in the Orange Empire Conference) to a 25-22, 25-8, 25-16 win over the Dons (5-14, 3-9). Kingsley Mason added five kills for OCC, while Joceline Martinez added four. The setting duo of Jordan Packer and Cassie Smits Van Oyen combined for 34 assists.
Early on, it looked like it might be a long night for the Pirates as the Dons came out swinging early. Strong play from Camille Birrer helped SAC carry a 19-17 lead late into the opening set.
But Coast used a crucial 5-0 run late to grab the lead for good. Kills by Utterback, Joceline Martinez and Abigail Brown spared the run and put OCC in front, 22-19. Finally at 24-22, an Utterback put-away ended the set and from there, it was ALL-Pirates the rest of the way.
Leading 9-5 in the second set, Coast turned up the jets and ripped off 11 of the next 12 points to pull away from the Dons and cruise to a 25-8 win.
Santa Ana led early in the third set, 7-4, but a 9-2 OCC run gave Coast the lead for good. A Packer ace on match point put an exclamation point on the end of the match.
The win sets up a pair of crucial matches against the top two teams in the OEC -- Saddleback (11-2) and Irvine Valley (10-2). Coast battled both teams to a pair of heartbreaking five-set losses that could've gone in OCC's favor.
Coast will return to action on Friday at Saddleback, beginning at 6 p.m. before returning to the Peterson Gym on Wednesday against the rival Lasers, also at 6 p.m.
