There was more pink in the Gavilan College gym than in a John Hughes movie and it was all for a good cause.
Live Oak, Christopher, Sobrato and Monte Vista Christian squared off in a doubleheader to raise money in the annual Dig Pink match for breast cancer research.
The day kicked off with a Live Oak sweep of Christopher in a match that nearly swung in the third game.
The Acorns were coming off a 3-2 loss to
“Win or lose, we needed play really, really hard,” said Live Oak Coach Lora Coleman. “We wanted to play hard and play our best. So that was the theme for today.”
With the Acorns already leading two games to none—having won 25-22, 25-16—Christopher appeared to be on the ropes late in the third game.
Live Oak had just went on a 9-1 scoring run to go up 19-12 when Christopher began its best stretch of the day.
Khaya Price and Katelyn Viray had kills with a Christa Arroyo ace to go on a quick 3-0 run to cut Live Oak’s lead to three.
“It’s our belief that we can play at that level consistently. We can do it in short bursts,” said Christopher Coach Brian Calimpong We try to preach to them just how good they really are, but it’s also they’ve got to make those plays and put them together. And we’re still trying to grow.”
The Cougars’ run finished by outscoring Live Oak 10-6, but they ran out of time.
Madison Hartman and Alexis Budde had late kills for the Acorns to secure the win, 25-22.
Calimpong said the team’s serve-receive was off for most of the game compounded by untimely errors that allowed Live Oak to stay in control of the match.
“It was a good eye-opener for us. It showed us some things we need to work on. We’ll get back in there Monday and work hard,” Calimpong said.
Until the end of Game 3, Live Oak controlled most aspects of the game, especially at the front net.
The Acorns had 16 blocks and numerous deflections at the line that held the Cougars hitters at bay.
“That was the best blocking day we’ve had,” Coleman said. “
That front line dominance proved crucial at the end of Game 2 when Daytona Hernandez and Courtney Borja teamed up for a pair of blocks as Live Oak went on a 5-1 run to put the game away 25-16.
“Our thing is when the game tight, it’s game point, a long rally or a game point, I try to teach them to put the ball over until they find the right set to put it away,” Coleman said.
The block was so dominant for the Acorns, they forced Christopher to become one dimensional with its attack.
While Olivia Tabron had 11 kills for the Cougars, no one else notched five.
Katelyn Viray, Ally Foster and Price each had four kills as the Cougars were held to 24 for the match.
By contrast, Live Oak had two players—Hartman and Borja—with 11 kills each.
Hartman finished with six aces and Borja had three blocks.
Budde added three kills with four blocks and Hernandez had two kills with two aces and four blocks.
Live Oak will next host Leland 6 p.m. Tuesday in a restart of league play.
Christopher, meanwhile—after getting a chance to watch Monte Vista Christian play Sobrato—will play the Mustangs at home 6:30 p.m. Tuesday.
