With wins against Santa Barbara College and L.A. Pierce College, the Warriors have passed Long Beach and are now in first place for the conference.

The Warriors now have a 4-2 conference record, and an 8-2 overall record

The home game against Santa Barbara resulted in a 3-1 win for the Warriors.

“We practiced hard, but a good team had us befuddled. They were very competitive. We wanted to play hard and get a win, but we let ourselves get sloppy, and that really cut it close for us,” Richard Blount, coach, said.

“We really played down, we have to learn to talk more. We really came together at crucial points, though,” Trevor Butler, outside hitter, said.

The team was excited about the win, but also aware that they could have played better and given themselves a better lead.

“If we have to take an ugly win, we’ll take it, but we should play better than that. But this win is huge for us. It gives us separation from them. If we had lost, we would be in the mud, this win keeps us in contention.” Blount said.

The away game against L.A. Pierce ended with a 3-1 win for the Warriors.

“It was tense. It was a playoff atmosphere,” Blount said.

The key in this type of game is to just support one another, not to interact with the fans, and to just focus on the win, Blount said.

Matt Pimblett, outside hitter, who has been out for the past five games came off the bench and got 18 kills, 12 digs, and 5 blocks during the Santa Barbara game and 14 kills and 15 digs at the LA Pierce game.

Hunter Hovland, outside hitter, and Kevin Burrell, middle blocker, played big as well, with 16 kills and 7 digs, and 5 kills and 8 blocks, respectively.

“They haven’t won a title in seven or eight years, but they were cheering like they had. Beating [L.A. Pierce] at their place really tasted good,” Blount said.

The Warriors have a home game against Moorpark College this Friday.