With the season dwindling down and the home crowd roaring, the Warriors knew they were in for an intense match against LA Pierce College.
“The pressure was not just from the game, but from the whole season,” Lawrence Tran said.
The pressure proved to be too much as the volleyball team lost 3-1 Friday at home in its 13th loss of the season.
With a slow start to the first period, the team kicked into action and played Pierce point for point, matching each of Pierce’s attempts at victory.
“We played well,” Dick Blount, coach, said.
The Warriors would lose the first period, putting themselves at an early disadvantage.
“We sputtered a little and then we got going. The other team took advantage of our slow start but then we started getting momentum and made some great plays,” Blount said.
“We didn’t give up,” Tran said. “We tried to keep each other positive.”
After keeping up with Pierce for the majority of the second period, they fell short and lost 30-26, but gained their composure and came back strong in the third period.
“Our setters worked extremely hard, especially our captain Nolan Imamura,” Blount said.
Even after falling behind by four points in the beginning of the third period, the Warriors bounced back and quickly caught up, winning the third period 30-27.
“We played well as a team,” Chris Ceballos said. “We bonded and tried to communicate more, stay calm and have smart serves.”
It wasn’t enough however, and EC lost in a very closely contested fourth period, leaving the scoreboard at 30-27.
Working together as a team has been the biggest issue this season, Ceballos said, but the team’s new sense of chemistry was evident throughout the entire match.
“Everyone is changing their perspective on teamwork,” Ceballos said. “We are going back to the basics.”
With rigorous practices and intense workouts, the team has been working hard to improve its skills and continue building the foundations of teamwork.
“We have to practice as a team to be a team,” Nick Demarco said, who was unable to play due to a dislocated shoulder.
With just a few games left in the season the Warriors are kicking into high gear and bringing their best to each game while keeping each other in check, Ceballos said.
Even with the loss against Pierce, the match’s turnout played a huge role in keeping motivation high.
Many of the players said that the huge turnout of fans was a factor in the successful play. Tran added that the crowd gave them a true sense of Warrior pride.
“It really helps to have a crowd supporting us. Our energy is higher and we feed off the crowd,” Tran said.