ollege Eagles last Friday, while putting on their best performance of the season, dominating in three sets.
“We played to our level,” said LMC Head Coach Lou Panzella. “It was nice to see the girls have some success on the court, and working hard trying to improve in practice.”
The Mustangs jumped to an early 0-7 start in the first set, forcing Eagle Head Coach Heather Sisneros to call timeout. The Eagles were displaying poor ball control that they never picked up throughout the game.
“We weren’t passing as well as we needed to be in order to convert,” said Sisneros. “If you don’t pass, you can’t set and hit.”
Coming out of the timeout, the Eagles were able to score their first two points of the game. Laney College seemed to have sparked little life by shortening the deficit 2-7, but the tenured Mustangs broke open the score to 4-21, before closing up the set 8-25. It seemed as though the Eagles’ lack of experience had dug them in a hole.
“We communicated a lot,” said LMC outside hitter Mele Afu. “And our energy level was up.”
The second set was the most competitive one of the game, although the Mustangs were still able to win by double digits. LMC was playing like a powerhouse team finishing the set 15-25. The Mustangs used this momentum to completely control the third set.
The Mustangs’ serving was overbearing for the Eagles, and helped LMC create a 2-17 lead in the set. Team captain and outside hitter Rachel Roskelley made her contributions by going on a serving tear. She was able to single out a player on the other team with subpar serve handling skills, and fired the ball to her every time. When Roskelley served she put all her power into it, launching herself halfway to the net. She finished with 7 aces, 5 kills and 4 digs.
Roskelly was not the only Mustang to put up big numbers, middle hitter Aleigha Williams had 7 aces and 4 kills in her own right. The Mustangs’ assist leader, setter Marissa Hunter, collected 20 more Friday, along with 3 aces and 5 digs.
All these stats lead to a 6-25 win in the final set, locking up a victory for the Stang Gang.
“We served really well. We had a couple of girls with five, six or seven aces each,” said LMC Assistant Coach Tyler Trolson. “That was really helpful for us.”
Along with great teamwork, a well-managed serving attack allowed the Mustangs to outshine the Eagles in this game.
“Looking at the first time we played Los Medanos, they have definitely improved on their serving,” commented Sisneros.
With this second win in a row LMC was able to boost its record to 4-8 on the season, while Laney College drops to 1-9.
“Our skills have been improving,” said Afu. “I look forward to enjoying to rest of the season with my teammates.”
The Mustangs will be facing off against Solano College at home tonight at 6 p.m. For more information involving Los Medanos College sports teams, stats, dates and times for up coming games visit www.lmcexperience.com.
