Spikers Dominant in Victory over LA Mission

From their initial 9-0 run to open the match, the Pirate volleyball team was dominant Wednesday, defeating Los Angeles Mission 25-10, 25-14, 25-13 at the Athletic Event Center. Kayla Murdoch recorded 15 kills in 19 swings, a .789 clip, and Katey Mulville had six winners while hitting .600 for Southern California's top-ranked team. Nevada Knowles handed out 20 assists and Autumn Rojelio Moreno had 16 digs in the triumph.

VC (18-1, 6-1) hit a season-best .515 as a team in the match with a season-low five errors in 66 swings at the net.

With Averi Carter on the serve, the Pirates rolled to a 9-0 advantage behind three kills by Murdoch. Rojelio Moreno hit three consecutive aces to push Ventura ahead 13-1, and the Pirates built the lead to 15-1 at one point. Knowles had a kill to stretch the margin to 20-5 before Ventura claimed the 25-10 set win.

Murdoch had two big winners early in the second set, pushing VC to a 4-2 edge, and Jocelyn Montoya served five winners for a 10-5 lead. Kylie Ibbotson hit back-to-back kills for a 15-9 lead, and Carter's tip for a win made it 23-12. Carter and Brianna Morrison combined for a block on set point to set the 25-14 final margin.

The Pirates kept the hammer down in the third set, moving ahead 10-4 on Carter's winner at the net. Knowles followed with a kill on the next point, and served three straight winners , the final point with an ace, soon thereafter to push the lead to 14-6. Ana Medrano had a back-row kill, then hit a winner at the net for a 22-12 advantage and Montoya's ace pushed the contest to match point. Ventura clinched the sweep with a 25-13 set win.

Knowles added eight kills in 11 swings to the Pirate attack, and Amelie Zubia handed out 14 assists. Mulville added four blocks, two solo, while Morrison totaled three block assists.

Ventura plays the back-half of the home-and-home with LA Mission on Friday Nov. 4. The match with the Eagles is slated to begin at 6:00 pm in Sylmar.