On the quiet evening of Saturday Oct. 11, as students were beginning to depart campus for fall break, Voelkel Gymnasium played host to the first Sixth Street volleyball matchup of the season. In the end it was the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) Athenas who ended up taking the Pomona-Pitzer (P-P) gym by storm, winning 3-1 and extending their hot streak.
The Athenas came into the game on a run of three consecutive victories. The Sagehens, however, had only one win in their last four games, having lost two earlier in the week.
These trends seemed to continue from the get-go, with the Athenas’ blistering 20-3 start in the first set, which they ultimately took 25-11.
After CMS brushed past them in the first set, P-P responded and kept the match close. Fueled by a 4-0 run to make it 15-7, the Sagehens won the second set 25-18.
Setter Hayden Lin CM ’28, who finished with 24 assists and 11 digs, acknowledged that the Athenas lost momentum in the second set as the Sagehens momentarily found their groove.
“At that moment, we knew that they didn’t have a great first set, and I think we kind of pulled away a little bit, started making our own mistakes,” Lin said. “We got challenged in that second [set].”
P-P head coach Valerie Townsend commented on her team’s lack of intensity in the first set and how they were able to improve in the second.
“I feel like there was a little anxiety stepping on the court, [but] once we got … the nerves out of our system, we were able to play,” Townsend said.
In the third set, the Sagehens continued to feed off their momentum from the second, going ahead 8-1 early to take a comfortable lead. However, this was quickly stifled by the Athenas. CMS came out on top, scoring seven points in a row to win the set 25-21.
Middle hitter Natalie Potter PZ ’26, who notched three kills in the game, reflected on losing the third set and the fatigue that affected the Sagehens’ performance in the fourth and final set, which they lost 19-25.
“A lot of the time on our team, in the third and fourth sets, we get a little bit tired, and so I think, losing by that little bit honestly … was definitely hard for our team to come back from,” Potter said. “I think that’s probably why we started the fourth set a little bit slower.”
CMS head coach Kurt Vlasich commended his team’s performance and stressed that it was their collective effort that carried them through a game where they relied heavily on both their starters and their bench.
“The match had a lot of highs, a lot of lows,” Vlasich said. “Both teams gained momentum [at] certain points. We came out really hot, then [P-P] figured it out. It took a few key subs for us to get it, but at the end of the day, it was nice to see those subs come in and be really productive.”
Lin echoed her coach’s sentiments about the contribution from a variety of Athenas in the rivalry win.
“We’ve worked really hard on sticking together over the entire season,” Lin said. “I think that really pulled [us] through. So many different people contributed to this win. And everyone played a really big role.”
Despite losing the second set, Vlasich reflected on the importance of the Athenas getting ahead early and their ability to adapt to the Sagehens’ surges.
“I think when we played with the lead, we [were playing] a little bit better, but I liked our effort on the defensive end,” Vlasich said. “Even when we were down, we were still fighting.”
While the Athenas added to their winning streak, the Sagehens continued their skid. Although the loss was the third in a row for P-P, Townsend felt encouraged by her team’s performance.
“The thing is, actually, even with this loss, we played better than we did all of last week,” Townsend said. “I felt really proud of our serving and our blocking today. We did a really nice job with that.”
Seeing her team’s progress has excited Townsend for the rest of the season, and she believes that the Sagehens have plenty to learn from their performance against CMS.
“I think it’s [the loss] teaching them that we’ve got to be consistent, right, reduce errors and stay aggressive on the court,” Townsend said.
On the Athenas’ side, their winning streak has continued to fuel their excitement and heighten their expectations for the rest of the season.
“I think the winning streak shows us we can do it, we have the skill,” Lin said. “As long as we work together, we can have the confidence to keep moving forward.”
For Vlasich and CMS, this confidence also stems from the team’s levelheadedness. As Vlasich noted, there is still room to improve.
“We’re gonna win a certain amount of points, we’re gonna lose a certain amount of points,” Vlasich said. “I think we’re finding [that] it’s all those points in the middle that are gonna start meaning the most for us, and so going into the second half [of the season], I think it’s learning from the moments where we didn’t execute at our best and just try to be better in that aspect.”
CMS, who now sits at 13-5 overall after sweeping Cal Lutheran on Tuesday, Oct. 21, is set to take on the Caltech Beavers at home on Friday, Oct. 24. The Sagehens, who are now 9-11 after their five-set win against the Beavers on Tuesday, Oct. 21, will also be at home on Friday Oct. 24, against La Verne.
Facebook Comments