PASADENA – It may have taken five sets, but the Grossmont College Griffins are moving on to the SoCal Regional Final to take on the top seed Ventura College Pirates on Saturday on the Central Coast.
The ninth seeded Griffins (22-3) went the distance with the eighth seeded Pasadena City College Lancers (17-8) with scores of 25-14, 25-16, 23-25, 23-25, 15-11 to get their 20th consecutive victory and move on in the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) playoffs.
The 20 consecutive wins is the longest stretch since a 19 game winning streak in 2016.
Three Griffins had double-digit kills led by a game-high of 14 from Kelsey Carter. Brooke Miller had 13, while Madi Bogle had a double-double with 12 kills and 11 digs. Chelsee Trendler had 42 of the Green and Gold's 52 assists on the night.
Grossmont sprinted out to an 8-2 lead before PCC would call their first timeout of the night. Pasadena would fight back to 10-7. After trading a couple points, Grossmont would put a strangle hold on the set with an 8-2 run and eventually won 25-14. In the set, the Griffins would hit a very tidy .591 hitting percentage.
The second set would be a slightly different script. PCC would race out to a quick 3-0 lead. That didn't last long as the Griffins got kills on consecutive plays by Amanda Pena, Carter and Miller to tie it up at 3-all. After both teams had mini runs to make it 7-all, Grossmont went on a true run. To the tune of 9-2 making the score 16-9 G-House. After Grossmont took a timeout at 18-13, Coach Brooke Callahan must've said something right as the Griffins closed out the set with a 7-3 run and taking the set 25-16 for a two sets to none advantage and on the verge of advancing.
Pasadena would not give up. This was the fifth match this season that went the distance for the Lancers (only the third for the Griffins) and the second were they had lost the first two sets. With the score 6-all, the Griffins would score kills from Bogle, Miller and Pena to make it 9-6 Griffins. PCC would punch the gas pedal at that moment, going on a 10-5 run to take the 17-14 lead. A couple of points later, and an attacking error by Pasadena would make it 20-18 in Pasadena's favor. The Lancers would get two of their nine service aces of the match to take a 23-18 lead and all but wrap up the set they would eventually win 25-23 to make the match score Griffins two, Lancers one.
The fourth set traded points until 11-all, PCC would score seven of the next ten points for a 18-16 lead. A pair of kills by Pena and an attacking error by PCC would give Grossmont the 19-18 lead. The Lancers would jump up on a 4-0 run and a 22-19 lead. The set would get tie up at 23-all before a kill and another ace by the Lancers to tie the match up at two sets all.
Pasadena would serve first in the deciding set. PCC would take the initial lead going up 5-4, but then an attacking error by PCC would tie it right back up at 5-all. A blocking error by Grossmont would lead to a Lancer 8-6 lead and trigger the changeover. It also triggered a Griffin run. Eight straight by Grossmont would force Pasadena to use both of their allotted timeouts to try and change the momentum. The only problem was that "Big Mo" was already sitting on the Griffins bench by that point. Pasadena would stave off the conclusion for three points, but a kill by Brooke Miller clinched the match for the Griffins.
The Southern California Regional Finals will be held at Ventura College's Event Center on Saturday, Nov. 26 at 6:00 p.m. For those going to the match, admission prices are set by the CCCAA at $12 for Adults, $8 for Seniors (60+), Kids (12 and under) as well as students, staff and faculty. Tickets will be available for purchase online at https://ventura.vbotickets.com/events.