SMC outclass men’s volleyball team
Warriors Casey Woods (left) and Josh Riblett attempt to block the ball against Daniel Vaziri from Santa Monica College. The Warriors lost at home 3-0 against Santa Monica on Wednesday night. Photo credit: Jorge Villa
With set two tied at 24 apiece, the men’s volleyball team looked to tie the set score with a serve.
The Corsairs came out and smashed the ball after the serve receive.
Freshman outside hitter Cesar Medina was given a chance to tie the game and make it last.
His attack went long and the Warriors lost set two 24-26, and would eventually lose the match 0-3 in sets against Santa Monica.
The 12-1 Santa Monica Corsairs (SMC) visited the 13-1 Warriors on Wednesday. El Camino looked to avenge their only loss of the season at the hands of SMC.
The first set was dominated by SMC as they toppled the Warriors 25-15.
The second and third set were tightly contested and led to a heart-breaking defeat for the Warriors. They lost both sets 24-26.
The first set of the match established the pace of the match when the teams came with different mindsets, sophomore setter Chris Griebenow said.
“They came to win, we came to not lose, there’s a difference,” Griebenow said. “We have to work on our serve/receive and focus on overall consistency.”
It was a consistent view among the players that the team did not show up against SMC.
“We knew we were playing a good team, but we didn’t play to our strengths,” Casey Wood, sophomore outside hitter and captain of the team, said.
“They served better than we did, but we had two players who missed practice,” coach Richard Blount said. “One guy missed Monday and Tuesday because his girlfriend had a kid and the other was late to practice, so he didn’t start.”
“They were rusty,” he added.
Sophomore middle blocker Peter Nordel said, “digging” was what SMC did well.
“Their defense was real good, ours wasn’t that great,” Nordel said.
Nordel who had five kills, zero errors, and two big block assists, played to his normal level, but felt SMC came to win.
“Luis Palos (10), was really good. His hitting and blocking hands were nice and Taylor Tattersall (9) played well,” Nordel said.
The team did not seem so down as they look to come back strong and finish the season on a high note.
“We have to stay with it, stay confident and not let it get us down,” Wood said.
With the loss, the Warriors fall to 13-2 overall and 6-2 in their conference. The Corsairs rise to 13-1 and stay undefeated in conference play, boasting an 8-0 record.
“It’s OK, we’ll see them in the finals,” Blount said.
