The Mustangs’ season came to an end on Tuesday in one of the closest battles of the year, narrowly losing to the College of Marin Mariners three sets to zero at Los Medanos College.
Finishing the season with a 4-12 record, sophomores Seana Leonard and Marissa Hunter hung up their jerseys for what they say is their last volleyball game.
“It was fun while it lasted,” said Hunter. “All the seasons I had in middle school [and] high school, it just came down to this last game… We came really far, not just as individual players, but as a team.”
Both Hunter and Leonard were escorted onto the court by their parents as they were given a bouquet of flowers during the pregame ceremony.
The first set began with both teams evenly matched. Rallies taking up extended lengths of time took place, scoring on both sides of the court, until the Mariners reached a decent sized lead at 20-13.
Failing to close the gap with Marin only needing one more point to take the set, Leonard was set to the serve at 24-17. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Leonard and the Mustangs scored five consecutive points.
Now only trailing by two the Mustangs had swung the momentum and looked to capitalize, but were yielded by a botched serve that hit the net and dropped to the canvas.
“We played with a lot of heart, [and] a lot of determination,” said LMC Head Coach Lou Panzella. “I was really pleased with the effort that the girls put into the game.”
The Mariners took over the second set by beating out the Mustangs, 25-10. In the second to last score of the set, the ball fell to the feet of four different Mustang athletes during a play miscommunication, ending what would have been a four-point rally.
The brute net game from middle hitters Kayla Shubin and Katie Sebastian was what had the Mariners on top, with both of them finishing the game with a combined 13 kills and 5 blocks.
The third set was the most competitive one in the game, with no team taking any significant lead. There was a dead even heat late in the set at 20-20, the Stang Gang dug deep in attempt to capture a win by diving for the ball and putting there bodies on line. The team collected over 20 digs throughout the game. But it was not enough,Mariners closed out the set, 25-21.
“We did pretty well,” said Marin Head Coach Lindsey Bacigalupi about how her team did throughout the season. ”This is the highest we’ve finished in terms of wins… We did pretty well against the top three, but next year we’ll get them.
The Mariners boost their record to 9-7, while the Mustangs drop to 4-12.
“I look forward to us being much more competitive next year,” said Panzella. “This was a learning experience for me. This was my first year coaching at the junior college… Next year we expect this to be a hot spot, that people are going to come watch us play, because we are so good.”
