Women's Volleyball Stretches Win Streak To 6

Pasadena City College women's volleyball head coach Mike Terrill is seeing right now what he envisioned with his deep 2023 roster and how potentially successful his team can achieve. The state #14-ranked Lancers dominated back-to-back sweeps over Fullerton and Citrus at the PCC Quad #2 tourney held Friday at Hutto-Patterson Gymnasium.

PCC upped its win streak to six and improved to 7-2 overall. 

PCC opened with a 25-12, 25-18, 25-18 triumph over Fullerton, then followed with their most sound performance in sweeping Citrus, 25-13, 25-16, 25-15. 

Against Citrus, the Lancers hit a season-best .320 as a team, led by second-year, outside hitter Emma Yogan's 12 kills (hit .400) and sophomore middle blocker Ashley Gilbert eight kills in just nine swings (.889). The team also totaled a season-high 15 aces, seven in the opening set, led by freshman setter Kamea Vongfak with four. 

Sophomore libero Makayla Chiechi served all three of her aces in the opening set alone while sophomore defensive specialist Karmen Turner (team-best seven digs) twirled three of her own in the match. Veteran outside hitter Reese Roper added two aces (and three kills).

Off the bench, letterman middle blocker Ariana Pedroza scored four kills in just seven attempts while returning outside hitter Ashley Marrone had four kills in nine swings. Standing out also was frosh setter Shaylee Ungos, who dished out a team-high 12 assists with a kill and an ace. 

"Today, it felt like any number we called to play came in and performed well," Terrill said. "Ever since the Ventura match (a loss on Aug. 30 at PCC), our team mindset switched completely from tentative to confident. It starts with Emma Yogan, who today really played like the type of hitter we saw last year and you can see just how dominant she can be. She turned it on when we needed it the other night against Moorpark in the fourth and fifth sets."

In the Fullerton match, Yogan led the way with 10 kills (.318) but it was the PCC reserves making waves as Pedroza scored six kills and made five blocks (one solo), Marrone had five kills, freshman opposite Karsyn Gwinnup tallied four kills and two block assists, frosh MB Katie Carius landed three kills and an ace, and first-year OH Chayse Hoon added two kills.

Starting letterman setter Lindsay Delgadillo delivered 25 assists and Vongfak had 10 assists, a team-high six digs and an ace. Freshman middle blocker Itzel Aguayo pounded four kills with two blocks and Roper chipped in three kills in the opening set before taking a well-earned rest in the final two sets. 

PCC will be tested on Tuesday, Sept. 12 when it plays at #2-ranked Grossmont in a 6 p.m. match.