In a nail-biting first set, the El Camino College Warriors came out strong, matching the Long Beach City College Vikings with back-to-back points.
Until the Vikings found their rhythm and never looked back.
The Warriors recovered from an early 9-4 disadvantage with four consecutive kills from outside hitter Jordan Jotie and outside hitter Garrett Gronbach, but the Vikings held on and won the first set 25-23, setting the tone for the rest of the match.
The Vikings defeated the Warriors 3-0 at the ECC Gymnasium on Wednesday, March 19, extending their winning streak against the Warriors, who have struggled to defeat the Vikings since 2021.
“Overall, we were able to pick ourselves up. I think we started off very slow, but overtime the set just kept getting better,” Vikings outside hitter Sebastian Kim said.
Kim led the team with 13 kills and 7 digs, along with outside hitter Alden Jacobs, who contributed 9 kills and 3 digs.
The second set remained intense until a 13-13 tie, when Vikings outside hitter Bryce Bowsher sparked a shift with two kills, forcing a Warriors timeout. The Warriors struggled afterward, scoring only three more points, allowing the Vikings to take control and win 25-16.
“Our first set tonight was excellent … aside from too many service errors, we were neck and neck throughout the entire set and played very well,” Warriors coach Casey Wood said. “We’re kind of searching for our identity, our soul, and my goal for the latter half of the season is to find that and embrace it.”
Jotie led the Warriors with 8 kills and 6 digs, while Gronbach finished with 6 kills and 7 digs. Despite their efforts, service errors cost the Warriors crucial points.
“We shuffled around a lot of our players, and we had them in the first set, but then we kind of just handed it right to them,” Gronbach said.
Mistakes piled up for the Warriors, allowing the Vikings to dominate late in the third set, and LBCC closed out the match with a 25–18 win.
“We could have played better. We definitely struggled with a couple of things that we’re still working on, but I think they [the team] brought it together,” Vikings coach Joshua Nehls said.
Warriors fall to (4-11) on the season while the Vikings move to (10-6).
The Warriors will play their next game on the road, facing the Antelope Valley College Marauders on Friday, March 21.
