Tigers Send Sophomores Off In Style
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Santa Ana (7-18, 2-14) | 19 | 17 | 10 | 0 |
|
Riverside (17-9, 11-5) | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Riverside City College looked to close its home season out with a bang and swept Santa Ana College in three sets (25-19, 25-17, 25-10).
The Tigers improve to 17-9 on the year and 11-5 in Orange Empire Conference action, while the Dons end the year at 7-18, 2-14 in conference.
Jaeda Whitmire led RCC with 10 kills, while Dani Luna followed with eight kills on an impressive .538 attack percentage. Alyssa Bishop dished out 30 assists and Kyra Myers finished with 19 digs.
The Tigers got off on a strong start, opening on a 7-1 run, but the Dons battled back to try to keep things close before back-to-back kills from Abbey Oaks and Whitmire forced Santa Ana to call a timeout. Santa Ana pulled within three, 22-19, but RCC ended the set with three straight points off kills from Myers and Whitmire and a combo block from Whitmire and Montana Gibson.
Riverside carried that momentum to take the second set and started the third on a 9-2 run, looking to put the match completely out of reach.
After Santa Ana pulled within five, 12-7, Gibson put RCC on the attack as the Tigers went on a 5-0 run with Tabitha Irish at the service line. Luna secured the win for RCC with a kill off a free ball at the net.
The Tigers – who secured a spot in the playoffs with a third-place finish in the OEC – wait to find out who they will play in the first round of the postseason, which is set to begin Saturday.