Pirate Volleyball Opens With Twin Wins in Kick-Off Tri

The Pirate volleyball team had a pair of victories Friday in the VC Kick-Off Tri at the Athletic Event Center. Ventura overmatched Copper Mountain College in three sets, 25-8, 25-5, 25-7 in the first match before turning up the heat against Imperial Valley after dropping the first set, producing a 25-27, 25-13, 25-7, 25-12 triumph. Kayla Murdoch recorded 21 kills in her orange and black debut while Nevada Knowles handed out 51 assists with 14 kills in the two wins.

In the opener, the Pirates were simply too much for the Fighting Cacti, who were playing the first women's volleyball match in school history. Ventura took less than an hour to dispose of their opponents in a sweeping victory.

Katey Mulville led the onslaught with eight kills and an .889 hitting percentage while Murdoch was a perfect 5-5 on her kill opportunities. Knowles handed out 22 assists in the match as VC allowed a total of 20 points in the three sets.

The Sailing was not quite as smooth for the Pirates in the nightcap. Ventura dropped the opening set against Imperial Valley before righting th ship to win the next three in a more-dominant fashion.

The first set was tight until Knowles served four straight winners to put Ventura ahead 16-12, ultimately building a 21-15 advantage. IVC came back with an 8-1 run to re-take the lead before the Pirates rallied to get to set-point, 24-23. The inspired IVC team prevailed, however, winning four of the final five points to gain the upper hand in the match, 27-25.

With the wake-up call, VC quickly turned things around, opening the second set with a 6-0 run with a pair of big-time kills by Murdoch. The Pirates stretched the lead to 21-9, and following four straight IVC winners, Averi Carter served Ventura to four points and the 25-13 set victory.

Ventura continued the roll with a 25-7 win in the third set before closing out the match 25-12 in the fourth.

Murdoch paced the attack once again with 16 kills and a .489 hitting percentage while Knowles recorded 12 winners with 29 assists. Amelie Zubia handed out 16 assists against Imperial and Alba Romanos Gracia paced the defense with seven digs. Knowles and Kylie Ibbotson each had five digs while Ibbotson also recorded three solo blocks and an assisted block. Carter had six services aces in the win.

The Pirates next host Pasadena at 6:00 pm on Wednesday Aug. 31.