Eye-Catching Vaqueros Sweep San Diego Miramar and Mesa

By Jimmy Friery

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The Santa Barbara City College Men's Volleyball team (4-2) swept both San Diego Miramar and San Diego Mesa on Friday in Rob Gym, a quad hosted by the Vaqueros.

While both wins were emphatic, one will catch more attention than the other. The 25-16, 25-18, 25-23 triumph over San Diego Mesa—last year's State finalist—surely will boost the Vaqueros' confidence.

Splitting Rob Gym in half, the Vaqueros first played San Diego Miramar as Western State Conference foe Moorpark lost to San Diego Mesa 3-2 on the opposite court.

Match one: SBCC def. San Diego Miramar 3-0 (25-23, 25-23, 25-18)

The first two sets were settled by the minimum two-point difference, but the Vaqueros prevailed in both to give themselves a cushion in set three. They played confidently, ending the match with their most impressive set, 25-18, to start the day off with a win.

Gammon Nilssen led the team with eight kills on just 14 attempts, hitting .429. Middle blocker Keegan Hubbard swung for six kills on an errorless eight attempts, adding six blocks. Only Mykolas Petritias had more blocks, tallying six block assists and one solo.

Ayden Welch (14 assists) and Devon Russell (11 assists) once again shared setting duties. Libero Andre Yarme naturally led the team with five digs.

Match two: SBCC def. San Diego Mesa 3-0 (25-16, 25-18, 25-23)

An hour or so later, Santa Barbara earned the same result against Mesa, albeit in a reversed nature of the sets. The Vaqueros cruised in their first two sets before a tighter 25-23 third-set win clinched the sweep.

Petritias led the team in kills (nine), qualified hitting percentage (.500, 9-1-16), aces (four), and digs (five). Hubbard had the same attack stats as the first match: six kills and no errors on eight attempts. Welch and Russell each had double-digit assists once again, dishing 18 and 10 respectively.

Next up for the Vaqueros is a trip to San Diego for the Grossmont Quad, Friday beginning at 10 a.m. They first match up against Palomar before facing the hosts, Grossmont.