Bringing out the Brooms
The Santa Monica College Corsairs women’s volleyball team recently defeated Western State Conference opponents, the Bakersfield College Renegades and the Antelope Valley Marauders in straight sets. The Corsairs’ win against the Marauders also marked head coach Christian Cammayo’s 100th California Community College Athletics Association (3C2A) win for indoor volleyball. While the Corsairs have fallen just short of the conference title, they are still in prime position to advance to playoffs.
The Corsairs maintained strong leads early, and were able to force mistakes out of the Renegades. Outside hitter Sadie Town led the Corsairs’ offense with 12 kills and a .391 hitting percentage. Corsairs’ middle blocker Nicole Lankton, opposite hitter Reese Luke, and outside hitter Allison Horin followed with seven kills each.
Corsairs’ libero Annah Legaspi led the defense, totaling 22 digs as Lankton and Luke led with three blocks each. Setter Stella Moritz earned two aces for the Corsairs as well.
On Friday, Nov. 8, the Santa Monica College women’s volleyball team, the Corsairs, hosted the Marauders, for the Corsairs’ last home game of the season. In addition, the Corsairs held a special celebration for the sophomore players on the team. The team honored the players from both teams briefly before the match began.
The Marauders opened the set with a kill from middle blocker Alicia Doty. The Marauders worked to attack the Corsairs’ outsides early, as they hit a cut shot to Corsairs’ outside hitter Sadie Town. However, the Corsairs maintained their momentum as Corsairs’ opposite hitter scored a kill early and setter Makena Gamby scored two back-to-back aces.
The Corsairs’ opposite Zoe Horner and Gamby continued to play strong early, as Horner earned another kill by tipping over the Marauders’ block, and Gamby scored off a setter dump as the Marauders watched the ball drop. Town scored another ace, forcing the Marauders into a timeout as they were struggling in serve receive.
As the Marauders were slowly beginning to match the Corsairs’ momentum, the Corsairs swiftly put a stop to it. Corsairs’ outside hitter Allison Horin scored an ace after a ball dribbled off the tape. Legaspi followed up with another ace, and Town continued to get kills, placing the ball in the deep left corner of the court. The Corsairs took the first set 25-17, following a kill by Horin.
The Corsairs’ had a strong start to set two, forcing the Marauders to make mistakes early, as Marauders opposite hitter Ashlyn Wyckhyuse hit into the net, and Doty and setter Cami Nelsen mistimed a play. Corsairs’ opposite hitter Reese Luke started off strong with two kills, and Corsairs’ middle blocker Mylah Niksa made noise as she earned her first kill of the second set.
Throughout the match, Legaspi continued to make a statement by digging every ball on the Corsairs’ side. Legaspi currently leads the conference in digs per set (5.52 d/s) and total digs (480), and is currently second in conference for aces per set (0.68). Most recently, Legaspi was named a State Player of the Week by the California Community College Women’s Volleyball Coaches Association.
“We’re really proud of Annah Legaspi,” said Corsairs’ head coach Christian Cammayo. “We’ve always known that she’s fantastic and it's just great that other people get to see it… and the crazy thing is she’s actually still improving.”
In the third set, the Marauders opened with an ace, but it was no match for Nicole Lankton as she followed with a kill and a block. As Gamby scored her second kill of the night, the Corsairs slowly began to make mistakes again, with Horner hitting out and Horin earning a net violation. After a long rally, the Corsairs let the ball drop on their side, allowing the Marauders to tie the score.
However, the Corsairs pushed through, with Luke earning more kills and Horin following up with another ace. Niksa also earned another ace as the pass from the Marauders hit the antenna. As the Marauders gave up more free balls, the Corsairs continued to score. The match ended with another kill from Niksa, as the Corsairs swept the Marauders in straight sets.
“We have a bye next week, and we’re on the road to finish the regular season at West L.A.,” said Cammayo. “And then we’ll have a conference crossover… if we take care of business and lock in the second place of conference. …We don’t know our opponent but it’s most likely L.A. Mission or Santa Barbara.”
“We’re still going for it all,” said Cammayo, in regard to what is coming up in the postseason for the Corsairs. “We really believe we can do it; we’re blessed with a team full of game changers that can come in and positively impact their squad… whether it's injuries or sickness, people have stepped up and busted games open.”
The Corsairs finish Western State Conference play at West Los Angeles College, on Nov. 13th at 6 p.m., and following shortly, will play in the Western State Conference crossover match - opponent and date TBA.