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Warriors Season Ends With Five-Set Loss at Golden West
April 17, 2013
Sophomore Matthew Pimblett had 19 kills while Trevor Butler and Ryan Olson had 10 apiece but it was not enough as the Warriors fell in five sets; 25-23, 23-25, 15-25, 25-23, 6-15 at Golden West in the CCCAA Men’s Volleyball Quarterfinals on Tuesday night.
The Warriors (10-8) lost to the Rustlers (15-4) for the second time this season at Golden West and were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs for the third consecutive season. The Rustlers move onto the regional semifinals where they will take on Western State Conference co-champion L.A. Pierce.
The Warriors won the opening match by a nose and then put themselves in prime position to win the second set, tying the score at 23 all on a kill by Pimblett. Rustlers’ middle blocker Tyler Kulikowski answered with a kill of his own to give the hosts a set point.
Warriors’ middle blocker Karl Acres was long on his kill attempt in the ensuing rally to tie the match at a set apiece. Kulikowski finished with 11 kills and five blocks for the Rustlers while Acres notched four kills and five blocks.
The Rustlers cruised in the third set but the Warriors answered the bell in the fourth set, edging out another two-point win to force a fifth and deciding set. That’s when the Warriors ran out of gas.
Rustlers’ outside hitter Matt Hilling took over in the final set, helping the hosts jump out to a 10-3 lead and the Warriors could not recover. Hilling, who was third in the state in kills coming into the match, hammered an incredible 32 kills to go along with 10 digs.
Other standouts for the Warriors included Roy Powell, who set a new career high with 17 blocks and also added eight kills with a .438 hitting percentage. Sophomore setter Frank Flanagan recorded his fifth double-double of the year with 41 assists and 13 digs while libero Errol Basconcillo had 10 digs.
Warriors Finish Third In WSC, Face Golden West In First Round
April 15, 2013
The Warriors concluded the 2013 regular season with a disappointing straight-set loss at L.A. Pierce on April 10. The loss locked the Warriors into third place in the Western State Conference and they will now have to travel to Golden West for the first round of the playoffs on April 16.
Trevor Butler led the Warriors with 12 kills in 28 attempts and committed four hitting errors, leaving his hitting percentage at .286. Sophomore Danny Welch added seven kills while Ryan Olson and Matthew Pimblett each had six kills. Frank Flanagan had 27 assists, eight blocks and five digs.
As a team the Warriors struggled mightily with their hitting throughout the match, managing just a .127 hitting percentage after committing 23 hitting errors. But the Warriors did manage to do a decent job at the net, recording 21 blocks, led by Roy Powell with 11 and Welch with nine.
The Warriors will now kick off the playoffs in the quarterfinals for the third straight season. It is the second time they will open on the road and the first time they will take on a team other than Grossmont in the playoffs. The Warriors are in search of their first state title in school history and will be trying to reach their first final since the 1983 season.
It will be the second time this season that the Warriors face the Rustlers at Golden West. They lost in four sets back on Feb. 8, 25-22, 25-27, 21-25, 11-25. It capped off a three-game losing streak for the Warriors and they would go on to win six of their next seven matches.
The winner of this match will face L.A. Pierce, who secured the WSC championship and a first-round bye with their win over the Warriors, in the state championships on April 18 at Long Beach.
Warriors Lose Thriller to Long Beach
April 5, 2013
The Warriors held a two sets to one lead on visiting Long Beach Friday night at the El Camino College South Gym, but they could not put them away as they suffered a gut-wrenching 25-22, 21-25, 25-21, 16-25, 10-15 loss in a critical Western State Conference match.
The Warriors (10-6, 7-2) fell into a tie for second place with the Vikings (13-3, 7-2) with one match left to play. Both teams trail first-place L.A. Pierce by one game with the Warriors scheduled to take on the Brahmas in the final game of the regular season on April 10.
Sophomore Matthew Pimblett led the Warriors with 13 kills and added 11 digs and two blocks in his final regular season game at the ECC South Gym. Sophomores Trevor Butler and Daniel Welch also played well in their last match in front of the home crowd, collecting 11 and 10 kills respectively. Butler also had eight digs. Setter Frank Flanagan had 42 assists.
The near-capacity crowd was treated to a great match as both teams took turns trading haymakers and never allowing the other to gain too much of a cushion in the early sets. The Warriors took the opener thanks to a 5-0 scoring run to give them a 12-6 cushion and then a 3-0 spurt to gain a 19-12 advantage, their largest lead in the entire match. But the Vikings managed to put together their own 7-3 run late in the set to cut their deficit to 24-22, but freshman middle blocker Karl Acres put away one of his eight kills to give the Warriors the early lead.
The Vikings answered by taking a tightly contested second frame that featured four lead changes and 12 ties. The Warriors trailed 15-11 before going on an 8-1 run to take a three-point lead and put the Vikings on the ropes. But the visitors responded with a 9-2 run to close out the set thanks to six kills from freshman Austin Arcala, including the deciding put-away to tie the match at a set apiece.
The Warriors took the third set while the Vikings ran away with the fourth, setting up a deciding fifth set with a potential home playoff game on the line for both teams. The Vikings scored the first two points of the frame before the Warriors answered with three straight to take the lead. But it proved to be their final lead of the match as the Vikings six of the next seven points to take an 8-5 lead and they would not surrender control of the set. Sophomore Greg Utupo had four crucial kills in the final set and John Schaefer had three kills and a block.
The Warriors still have an outside chance of winning the conference title, but will need to beat the Brahmas on April 10 and have the Vikings lose their final match of the season at Santa Barbara. If that happens, the various tiebreaker scenarios would have to be reviewed to determine the seeding in the playoffs, which begin on April 16.
Warriors Sweep Moorpark, Clinch Playoff Berth
April 3, 2013
TORRANCE, Calif. – The Warriors sophomores stepped up and clinched a playoff spot Wednesday night with a 25-17, 25-22, 25-22 Western State Conference victory over Moorpark at the El Camino College South Gym.
Matthew Pimblett led the offense with 12 kills; Trevor Butler added 10 kills, seven digs and six blocks and Frank Flanagan had 33 assists. It was the Warriors’ (10-5, 7-1) third straight win and fourth consecutive victory at home. They are currently tied for first place in the conference with L.A. Pierce, who defeated third-place Long Beach on March 29.
The Warriors swept the season series against the Raiders (8-7, 3-5), but Wednesday night’s match was much smoother than their March 13 contest which went the full five sets.
“Their middle is very, very good,” Butler said. “Last time we played them he was making all the shots and we really keyed on him (tonight). We all watched our film and adjusted to it and it helped us a lot.”
The Warriors led wire-to-wire in the first set. They went on an 8-5 scoring run to take a five-point lead late in the set and then closed out the first with a 6-1 run.
“We’re playing for every point now,” Flanagan said. “I think that’s the biggest part about us; that’s the thing we’re getting really good at. I think we’re building more chemistry with each other.”
The second set was a different story as the Raiders led for the majority of the game. But the Warriors never let their deficit get larger than three points and then made their move trailing 16-13, scoring six of the next eight points to take a 19-18 lead that they would not relinquish.
The Warriors will now host Long Beach on Friday, a team that handed them their only conference loss back on March 20.
“They played very well, and we kind of had a slow game the last time we went to their house,” Butler said. “They were fired up. We just need to work on getting our serves in. After tonight, we missed a bunch of serves and that’s something we’re going to be practicing on.”
The match will also be the final regular season home match for the Warriors and they are looking forward to finishing conference play undefeated at home.
“We’ve just got to stay on pace with where we’re at and hopefully get this place packed on Friday so we can put on a show,” Flanagan said.
Warriors Beat Santa Monica as Finish Line Nears
April 1, 2013
It was a light week for the Warriors with only one match scheduled, but it proved to be hard work as they defeated Santa Monica 26-24, 25-20, 25-23 on the road in a Western State Conference match on March 29.
Trevor Butler led the way offensively for the Warriors with 12 kills. He tallied a .242 hitting percentage and also tacked on seven blocks and one ace. Sophomore Matthew Pimblett had nine kills with a .217 hitting percentage. It snapped his four match streak with double-digit kills. In those four matches he averaged an astonishing 16.25 kills per match.
Setter Frank Flanagan added 31 assists, eight digs and three blocks and libero Errol Basconcillo anchored the defense with a team-high 18 digs.
The Warriors have now won six of their last seven matches, all coming since the start of conference play. Their only loss came to Long Beach on the road. With three matches left in the regular season, the Warriors are locked in a three-way tie for first place in the WSC with Long Beach and L.A. Pierce.
The Warriors close out the season with matches against the Vikings and L.A. Pierce, but before they get to those they have to deal with a dangerous Moorpark team on Wednesday that took the Warriors to five sets back on March 13.
Semo Provides Spark as Warriors Edge Santa Barbara
March 22, 2013
TORRANCE, Calif. – The Warriors opened the second half of their conference schedule with a thriller, escaping with a 22-25, 25-15, 25-23, 20-25, 15-5 win over Santa Barbara in a Western State Conference contest Friday night at the El Camino College South Gym.
The Warriors (8-5, 5-1) were coming off a tough loss against Long Beach in a showdown for first place in the conference while the Vaqueros (4-9, 1-5) have not been able to get anything going in WSC action. The victory pushed the Warriors record in five set matches to 2-1, their last win coming against Moorpark on the road in the conference opener. As for the Vaqueros, they have pushed teams to a fifth set five times and have yet to come out on the winning side.
“Most grueling five sets of our season by far,” Warriors sophomore Matthew Pimblett said. “We were a little inconsistent; well we were a lot inconsistent toward the first half of the entire game but we pulled through at the end. We came together and consistency was the key tonight."
Pimblett set season highs en route to his second double-double of the season with 21 kills and 19 digs. Trevor Butler added 12 kills, nine blocks and six assists and Frank Flanagan dished out a season-high 58 assists. But the most important night came from sophomore Samusu Semo who hammered down eight kills to go along with four blocks coming off the bench and providing the spark the Warriors needed after they dropped the first set.
“It’s a tough team,” Semo said. “Everyone in our conference is good and I’m glad that we came together as a team and pulled it out in five. Just [wanted] to play my hardest and play how I practice.”
Semo entered the match midway through the first set and then made his presence known in the second frame. The Warriors ran much of their offense through him in the early going and it helped them take control of the set, leading by as much as 13 in the set.
Semo continued to shine in the third set but the Vaqueros would not go away. The teams traded the lead five times in the third, including four times after the score was tied 18-18. The Warriors took a 24-23 lead after Vaqueros sophomore Dakota Smith’s kill attempt sailed out of bounds. Pimblett then put the set away with a thunderous kill.
The Vaqueros dominated the fourth set but ran out of gas in the final frame. The Warriors went on a 6-0 scoring run on Pimblett’s serve to take a commanding 11-4 lead and they never looked back. For Pimblett, the success in the final set was clear.
“We kept the ball in play, simple as that,” Pimblett said. “As long as our ball is in play we’re the better team. The better team always wins once the ball is in play.”
Warriors Take Over First Place With Sweep of Pierce
March 15, 2013
TORRANCE, Calif. – Two days after needing the full five sets to get past Moorpark on the road, the Warriors returned home and took care of business quickly as they swept L.A. Pierce 25-21, 25-19, 25-22 in a showdown of the top two teams in the Western State Conference Friday night at the El Camino College South Gym.
The victory vaulted the Warriors (7-4, 4-0) into sole possession of first place in the conference and was also the team’s fourth consecutive victory. The Brahmas (6-5, 3-2) fell to second place.
Sophomore Frank Flanagan finished the match with 47 assists, a new season high. His previous season high was 45 assists, which he accumulated on Wednesday at Moorpark and Grossmont on Feb. 20, but both of those matches went the full five sets. While the win was important, Flanagan was aware that there is still a lot of season left.
“It puts us in sole possession of first but we haven’t even finished the first half of conference so we just have to keep progressing,” Flanagan said. “But tonight’s a good home win. We’ve learned earlier that practices aren’t fun after you lose a home game.”
Matt Pimblett, Ryan Olson and Trevor Butler each finished the match with 12 kills and Roy Powell added seven kills in a spot-start.
“I wanted to leave it all out on the court for him (Warriors head coach Richard Blount) to show that what he’s doing for us is appreciated to the greatest extent,” Powell said.
The Warriors got out to a great start, pulling away with a 5-2 scoring run early in the first set to give them a five-point cushion. It proved to be the difference as the visiting Brahmas made a run late in the set to cut the deficit to 18-17 but would get no closer.
“I feel like we always have a rough start in the beginning so picking it up in the beginning to start it off is always a good thing,” Olson said.
The second set was a bit more contentious as the Brahmas overcame a four-point deficit to tie the score at 14-14. The teams traded points but the Warriors never allowed their opponents to take a lead and then seized control of the set thanks to consecutive kills from Olson and some costly hitting errors from the Brahmas. The Warriors clinched the set when the Brahmas were called for a delay of game and then issued a yellow card on set-point.
The Warriors controlled most of the third set, leading by as much as six points and were on the verge of clinching the match at 24-19. But the Brahmas put together a rally and pulled within 24-22, forcing a Warriors timeout. Karl Acres then hammered down the game-winning kill to seal the match.
The Warriors will travel to Long Beach on March 20 for the first time this season.
“We’ve got to go in there and see where we’re at right now,” Flanagan said. “If we go in there and go hard that whole game we’ll see where we’re at, what we need to work on and we can get ready for the second half of conference.”
Warriors Rout Santa Monica
March 8, 2013
TORRANCE, Calif. – The Warriors grinded out a tough first set and then cruised to a 25-18, 25-12, 25-11 Western State Conference victory over Santa Monica Friday night at the El Camino College South Gym.
“I thought everyone played hard and we kept going strong throughout the game,” Warriors middle blocker Karl Acres said. “We didn’t lose our focus.”
The Warriors (5-4, 2-0) pushed their record above .500 for the first time since they won their opening match of the season on Jan. 30 and have won four out of their last five matches. The Corsairs (3-7, 0-3) dropped their sixth straight match after starting the season 3-1.
Trevor Butler led a balanced attack by the Warriors as he finished with nine kills, four blocks and two aces. Daniel Welch added five kills and a team-high eight blocks and sophomore setter Frank Flanagan dished out 23 assists.
Freshman Errol Basconcillo led the defense with 15 digs and credited the Warriors persistence for the lopsided victory.
“We just kept on pushing and pushing,” Basconcillo said. “We were talking a lot more and communicating. We were just playing volleyball and having fun on the court.”
One week after hammering down a career-high 18 kills at Santa Barbara, sophomore Matthew Pimblett recorded another eight kills to go along with six blocks and five digs. He came into the match tied with Butler for the team lead with 79 kills on the season. He also leads the Warriors with a 3.04 kills per set aveage.
“We did everything better,” said Pimblett about the victory. “I think, there’s just more consistency all around, just working on keeping the ball in and letting our team do what we do best and that’s just play volleyball.”
The match did not start out easy for the Warriors as the first set had both teams exchange the lead seven times to go along with 12 ties. The Corsairs led 13-10 at one point, which would be their biggest lead of the set. But the Warriors answered with four straight points to take the lead. They went back-and-forth some more with the Corsairs eventually taking an 18-17 lead, but it proved to be their last.
The Warriors ran off eight straight points to win the set thanks to kills from Flanagan, Welch and Butler along with two critical blocks by Welch and Flanagan. The Corsairs would never threaten again.
The Warriors got out to 8-1 leads in both the second and third sets and went on to cruise to victory both times. The Warriors are currently second in the conference behind L.A. Pierce, who is 3-0 in WSC action. The two teams meet at the ECC South Gym on March 15.
Pimblett Unloads 18 Kills As Warriors Beat Santa Barbara
March 4, 2013
The Warriors opened Western State Conference action last week with an impressive 25-21, 19-25, 25-22, 25-16 victory at Santa Barbara. The win came after a 10-day layoff and a heartbreaking five-set defeat at the hands of Grossmont.
Sophomore Matthew Pimblett recorded a season-high 18 kills and .342 hitting percentage in the victory. He added two digs and four blocks. Pimblett's dynamic performance came at the right time as sophomore Trevor Butler had a rare off-night, connecting on just seven kills and committing an uncharacteristic 10 attack errors in a victory. He did manage to protect the net for the Warriors, swatting back a team-high eight blocks.
Frank Flanagan had 36 assists after coming into the match averaging 9.45 assists per game. He also had 11 digs to record his second consecutive double-double. Errol Basconcillo anchored the defense once again with 13 digs.
The Warriors will return home this Friday and look to stay unbeaten in conference when they host Santa Monica.
Butler Slams 12 Kills But Warriors Fall To Grossmont
February 25, 2013
The Warriors faced a familiar foe last week when Grossmont paid a visit to the El Camino College South Gym for a non conference match. The Griffins have ousted the Warriors from the playoffs in each of the last two seasons.
It was a tough battle but the Warriors could not hold on as they fell once again to the Griffins in a five-set thriller; 25-14, 23-25, 25-17, 12-25, 16-18. The Warriors led 13-8 in the final set but could not close out the Griffins, who went on a 5-0 scoring run to tie the match and they eventually went on to win.
Trevor Butler led the way for the Warriors with 14 kills on 31 attempts, finishing the match with a .226 kill percentage. Matthew Pimblett added 12 kills and seven digs while Daniel Welch was extremely efficient for the team with eight kills and a team-high .583 kill percentage.
Frank Flanagan dished out 45 assists to go along with 10 digs and 10 block assists. Karl Acres hammered down nine kills with just one error to go along with 14 block assists and Erron Basconcillo led the defense with 15 digs.
The Warriors will be back in action this week after an eight-day layoff when they travel to Santa Barbara on Friday to open Western State Conference action.
Warriors Drop Matches To Orange Coast And Golden West
February 11, 2013
The Warriors began last week with a 25-21, 25-20, 25-20 loss at Orange Coast despite nine kills from Trevor Butler and 29 assists from Frank Flanagan. The Warriors held leads of 13-9 in the first set and 14-12 in the second frame but they could not hold off the host Pirates.
In the third set, the Warriors trailed 11-10 but allowed the Pirates to go on a 6-0 scoring run to put themselves in a corner. The Warriors fought back and cut the Pirates lead to 21-18, but they would get no closer.
On Feb. 8, the Warriors completed their three-game stretch against Orange County teams when they travelled to Golden West.
The Warriors came out strong, taking the first set 25-22. It snapped a string four consecutive sets without a victory. But the Rustlers answered by winning the next three sets to take the match, 22-25, 27-25, 25-21, 25-11.
The Warriors 11 points in the fourth and final set were their lowest total in a set this season. They will attempt to regroup this week with matches against San Diego City and Palomar.
Warriors Split First Two Matches Of Season
February 4, 2013
Trevor Butler had 10 kills and eight digs as the Warriors opened the 2013 season with a 25-21, 25-15, 25-20 sweep of San Diego Mesa on the road last week.
Matthew Pimblett added nine kills and three blocks to go along with nine digs in the victory. But the Warriors elation was short-lived as they dropped their home opener a couple of days later.
Three players finished with double figures in kills for the Warriors, but it was not enough as they fell to Irvine Valley in four sets, 18-25, 23-25, 26-24, 23-25. Pimblett led the way with 11 kills while Butler and Ryan Olson each added 10 in the loss. Olson also had four aces and Frank Flanagan dished out 34 assists.
The Warriors will hit the road this week with a couple of tough matches against Orange Coast and Golden West.