Vaqs Open Conference with Tough Loss to LA Mission, Come back against Cuesta

By Anika Brodnansky 

Santa Barbara City College's women's volleyball team fell to LA mission on Tuesday, Oct. 2.

This was the Vaqueros conference opener, and though they fought hard, they were not able to come through with a win. The match finished with a total of 4 sets, with final scores of  25-19, 25-20, 23-25, and 25-21.

"I'm always honest with the team and I told them tonight, we didn't deserve to win that match because the other team out worked us. I was pretty disappointed with our inability to bounce back from rough patches during the game, which up until tonight had been a strength of ours," Head Coach Kat Nitkso said. 

Tana Long led the team with 11 kills, followed by Bayley Padia, who had 9 kills. 

"I would like to highlight the play of outside hitter Bayley Padia; she came into the game mid-way through the match, for her first action of the season after missing more than a month with an injury. Her strong offensive attacking gave the team a spark in a comeback win in set 3, but unfortunately we couldn't hold on to a lead in set 4 to push to a deciding set 5," Nitkso said. 

The Vaqueros followed this match by playing Cuesta College on Oct. 4, and redeeming themselves with a 3-1 win. 

This was another strong game for Padia, finishing with 13 kills and scoring 15 points for the team. 

City College will play again on Wednesday, Oct. 9 against Moorpark College.