At the end of the opening day of the Cougar Classic in Southern California, Corban's volleyball team fell to San Diego Christian in four hard-fought sets.
Freshmen Lead Corban Against San Diego Christian
BOX SCORE
AZUSA, Calif. – Vincent can Gogh once said, "It is a pity that, as one gradually gains experience, one loses one's youth."
That is exactly the case for Corban's volleyball Class of 2013, as the quintet of freshmen Warriors – Chandra Baskoro (Gresham, Ore.), Karisa Calderon (Murrieta, Calif.), Katelyn Davis (Salem, Ore.), Morgan Hirzel (Fullerton, Calif.), and McKenzie Purnell (Adrian, Ore.) – accounted for 77.1% of the team's kills in Friday's loss to San Diego Christian, 3-1 (25-18, 21-25, 20-25, 19-25), to conclude their play at the season-opening Cougar Classic inside the Felix Event Center on the campus of Azusa Pacific University.
In a short amount of time, the five freshman have gained a lot of collegiate experience and began to lose their youth as underclassman. Over the Warriors' opening two matches, the Class of 2013 has registered 56 of the team's 74 total kills.
Set #1 brought the Warriors their first moral victory of the season, as Corban battled back from an early 2-0 deficit thanks to a 7-2 run that included kills by Baskoro, Hirzel, and junior Teri Braun (Dallas, Ore.). With a three-point lead (7-4), Corban continued to hold the advantage and only allowed San Diego Christian to get within one point (13-12) over the opening half of the set. The Warriors would build their lead to as much as six points (21-15) following back-to-back-to-back service aces by junior Rebecca Franke (Pendleton, Ore.). San Diego Christian attempted a last-minute comeback and pulled within five points (23-18) before Corban closed out the set thanks to a combo block by Baskoro and sophomore Tiffany Land (Independence, Ore.) en route to a seven-point win (25-18).
In the second set, both teams would battle back and forth over the opening 12 points. With the score knotted at 6-all, Corban used a mini 4-0 run to grab a 10-6 lead that forced the Hawks to burn its first timeout. Following a much-needed break, San Diego Christian used an 11-7 run that tied the score at 17-17 thanks to a pair of service aces by the Hawks' Courtney Barlow. After a Baskoro kill that equaled the score at 18-all, SDCC would never look back grabbing the lead and pushed to a set-ending four points (25-21) thanks to a closing kill by Rachel Blair.
The third set was a near repeat to Set #2, as both teams battled through the opening 14 points with the score tied at 7-7. San Diego Christian would be the run-holder this time around, as the Hawks used a 4-0 run to take an 11-7 lead. Corban would try and battle back, but could not get an closer than two points (20-18) thanks to a Hirzel kill. San Diego Christian would close out Set #3 via a Sara Aguilar kill for the final tally of 25-20.
The fourth and final set would stay close over the opening 20 points before San Diego Christian used a mini 3-0 run to pull ahead (13-10). The Warriors would get to within three points (21-18), but could not close the gap that the Hawks has created. San Diego Christian closed out the match with a Lauren Howard ace for the final score of 25-19 and a victory in four sets.
Hirzel led the Warriors' attack for the second straight match thanks to a team-high 16 kills, while Baskoro and three other players (Braun, Harman, and Land) added 12 and 4 kills respectively. Calderon registered her first double-double of the young season thanks to a team-high 22 assists and 11 digs, while Baskoro got up her first double-double this season when she recorded 10 digs to go along with double-digit kill total.
San Diego Christian was led by Howard's match-high 22 kills, while a trio of Hawks – Aguilar, Blair, and Lauren Higgins – added 8 kills each. Rachel Allen handed out a match-high 39 assists for SDCC, while Courtney Barlow recorded a match-high 16 digs from her back row position.
With this afternoon's result, Corban falls to 0-2 on the young season compared to San Diego Christian's 1-1 record. The Warriors will return to the Felix Event Center on the campus of Azusa Pacific University on Saturday, August 22nd, when they continue play at the Cougar Classic against the NAIA's No. 20-ranked Biola beginning at 9:00 a.m.