College of Marin Beach Volleyball received an unwelcome opening to their 2019 Big 8 Conference season. They travelled to Stockton to take on Sierra and Delta Colleges and were defeated in each match by the score of 5-0. The day began with a sweep at the hands of Sierra before the afternoon match saw them downed by Delta College.
Sarah Harris and Alejandra Leon led the way for the Mariners as the top pair, but they went down in straight sets to Haley Biles and Meghan Merlino of Sierra 21-14 and 21-9. Against Thompson and Markham of Delta College, Harris and Leon suffered a similar fate with a loss in straight sets 21-11 and 21-9.
Amber Proctor and Kirsta Rodriguez-McKee showed promised in their two matches but ultimately fell in both. Against Sierra they were defeated 21-10 and 21-15 but had a better performance against Delta. They dropped the first set 21-9 but nearly took the second, falling in extra points by a score of 24-22.
Ashley Chanthongthip and Magnolia Johnson continued their new partnership in the three spot and were pretty competitive against Sierra. After losing the first set 21-12 they bounced back and nearly took the second, but fell 21-18. Versus delta, the Mariners' threes fell 21-7 and 21-13.
The fourth and final pairing for the Mariners was Nattasia Ferrin and Mackensie Graham. They lost to Sierra by scores of 21-4 and 21-10 before dropping their match to Delta 21-8 and 21-13.
College of Marin was unable to field a fifth pair and they were forced to forfeit the fifth match to both Sierra and Delta.
Despite the loss, it was much improved showing over similar matches from the previous season. Their record stands at 3-6 overall and 0-2 in the Bay Valley Conference, already matching their win total 2018.
Next up for the Mariners is a pair of non-conference matches in Rocklin at Sierra College on Wednesday, March 27th. They face West Valley College at 1:30 and Cabrillo College at 4:30.