SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – Santa Barbara City College Women’s Volleyball (8-12, 3-3) fell to No. 15 Moorpark (14-5, 5-2) in straight sets Friday at Rob Gym. The first two sets were ultra-competitive, with Moorpark winning 25-22 and 25-23, before taking the third 25-16.
The first set went to 17-16 Moorpark as the Vaqueros were always a point or two away. After the Raiders briefly pulled away, the Vaqueros forced a timeout down 22-21. The visitors were able to finally solidify the victory, though, winning 25-22.
The Vaqueros looked to tie the match in the second, holding a slim lead most of the set. Morgane Breault‘s ace gave them a 14-11 advantage, and two Osby Judd-Wade kills in quick succession made it 19-14 after a Moorpark timeout. However, Moorpark rattled off six in a row from there to take a 20-19 lead. The score advanced to a 23-23 tie, with Moorpark winning the final two points, and set.
In the third, Makeleta Leilani Stepp had two early blocks as the score began tied 8-8. Moorpark pulled away slowly but surely, taking 14-10 and 17-11 leads. Sam Martinez then went on a decent serving run, highlighted by an ace, but Moorpark won seven in a row after that to all but end the match. The third-set score was 25-16.
Juliette Dekker led Santa Barbara with nine kills and added 12 digs—one kill away from a double-double. Judd-Wade finished with eight kills, hitting an errorless .444, and three blocks. Stepp had five kills and team-leading five blocks.
Sophie Otte led the team with a .455 hitting percentage (5-0-11). Brenna Owens recorded 30 assists and eight digs. Mayla Saldana matched Dekker with 12 digs, and Breault added 11.
The Vaqueros travel to No. 12 Ventura College (14-5, 4-2) for a rescheduled match on Monday at 6 p.m.