Despite being undermanned and far from home, College of Marin Beach Volleyball did not disappoint on Tuesday. The Mariners traveled south to face the Santa Barbara City College Vaqueros and grabbed a 3-2 victory in the match. The Mariners had just eight players and could field only four pairings but were better in three of four to clinch the match.
College of Marin took two of the top three matches, but forfeited the fifth pairing due to lack of players. The match was ultimately decided by Marin's number four pairing of Luisa Ayala and Nattasia Ferrin.
The Freshman duo were paired for the first time this season and showed early chemistry with a 21-14 win in the first set. They were outdone in the second, falling 21-11 to setup a match deciding third and final set of the match. Ayala and Ferrin dug deep and dominated their competition for a 15-6 final set win that clinched the match for the Mariners.
The top pairing of Sarah Harris and Alejandra Leon were excellent, defeating their counterparts in straight sets 21-12 and 21-15. The duo improved their season record to 3-4 in highest seeding.
Amber Proctor and Kirsta Rodriguez-McKee comprised the second pair and unfortunately fell to their opposite numbers from Santa Barbara 21-9 and 21-11.
They were avenged by the threes of Magnolia Johnson and Ashley Chanthongthip who were excellent. The pairing took the first set 21-15 and edged out their competition 21-19 in set number two to record the win.
For Head Coach Lisa Gera, "It was a great way to end the preseason and head into conference! The girls keep improving each time they step on the court. It's exciting to see their progress and how far they have come in such a short time."
The victory improved the Mariners' record to 3-4 overall on the season. They open Big 8 Conference competition on Friday, March 22nd in Stockton with matches against Sierra and Delta Colleges.