Setback on the Sand
On March 20, the Santa Monica College (SMC) women’s beach volleyball team held an anticipated tri-matchup against the Hope International University (HIU) Royals and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) Cornhuskers at Ocean Park Beach. Heading into the matches, the Corsairs held a record of 8-3 and currently sit fourth in the Western State conference.
The Corsairs hit the ground running against the Royals, with pairs Nicole Lankton, Annah Legaspi, and Sophia Vandenberg, Samantha Harvey starting off strong in their first sets. The Corsairs dominated from the service line and at the net, but a few mistakes allowed HIU to catch up.
The Royals defeated the Corsairs with smart placements of the ball in the court and taking advantage of the weakening defense Despite struggling in serve-receive and making small mistakes, the Corsairs kept up their energy and won two of their matches. Lankton and Legaspi fought in a tight set, trading back-to-back points with the Royals, but lost with a ball hit out.
The Royals defeated the Corsairs, winning 3-2. The Corsairs kept up the energy after facing their first loss of the day as they anticipated the matchups between the Cornhuskers.
“I think playing really good teams in general…it ups our level as a program,” said Corsair split Sadie Town in regards to playing high-level opponents. “It's really cool to be out here and like, meet all these players, see all these players, and get more experience in general. I think that…it just helps us get more experience and improve our confidence.”
However, the Corsairs couldn’t outlast the momentum coming from the Cornhuskers. While the Corsairs were struggling against the Huskers' size, they found other ways to score points. Corsairs’ pair Eden Lorin and Town beat Huskers’ pair Andi Jackson and Harper Murray with tips. Harvey and Vandenberg maintained their offense and continued to pick up balls on defense, but were struggling with serves.
The Corsairs lasted in rallies with their defense, but they were swept by the Huskers. With a 5-0 win, the Huskers extended their winning streak to 17 straight.
“I think that it was a slight letdown mentally. I don't actually think it's a physical issue so much as kind of pushing through the discomfort, and then really finding a way to grind out some wins,” said head coach Christian Cammayo on the Corsairs’ match day performance.
“...you need an opponent to push yourself …out of that comfort zone, and when you have, like, some of the best opponents anywhere…Hope International, they just lost a tight match to the number one ranked NAIA program last Thursday, and they upset the number four ranked team,” said Cammayo. “Nebraska is on a now…16, match win streak, and…they have multiple All-Americans. They're third in the country. So it's like, that's what we're looking for. We want to get pushed out of our comfort zone to find out how good we can become.”
The Corsairs recently continued their conference play in another tri-matchup against the Moorpark College Raiders and the Ventura College Pirates on March 21 at Moorpark College, earning a 3-2 victory over the Pirates. They look to face their next opponents, the Cypress College Chargers and Lassen College Cougars at Ocean Park on March 26.