The volleyball team faced off in an elimination game against their rivals at Pierce College in an effort to make the playoffs.

“We knew they were out for blood since the last time we played (Pierce College), we took them down on their home court,” Dick Blount, coach, said.

Pierce gained an early lead winning game one, 21-25. The Warriors rebounded by winning the next game, 25-21.

Pierce came back with a 16-25 win but could not keep it going as the Warriors won the final two games, 25-21 and 16-14. The game resulted in a 3-2 win.

“We had the tie breaker against them going into the game, so we just had to beat them. We knew that if we did, we were in the playoffs as the second seed,” Blount said.

Although the win was an exciting one for the team, it is admitted that the Warriors could have played better.

“Both teams played an ugly game and both teams did not play their best ball. We went back and forth giving up 5 points at a time until we hit our stride,” Blount said.

Dustin Ihde, middle blocker,  sprained his ankle during the game yet played through it and hit key blocks to contribute to the win.

“Dustin came off the bench and hit two back to back blocks off the bench to win the game. He showed a lot of heart, and you have to respect that. You want sixteen kids like that on your team,” Blount said.

The Warriors played against EC’s alumni players April 13.

Blount coached his current players in their game against players who are twenty years removed from El Camino.

The game gave multiple bench players the opportunity to show what they can do while Blount decided to rest a few starters for the upcoming playoff game.

Things started out well for the current Warriors team as they won the 1st two games.

That was short lived as the rest of the alumni players began to eventually clean house with three victories in a row.

“These games are always fun and competitive. The old guys get to show that they can still play and the young guys get to learn from past EC greats,” Blount said.

This week, Blount will be getting the team ready for its playoff games, starting April 17.