The562’s coverage of Vikings athletics is sponsored in part by Long Beach City College.
The LBCC women’s volleyball team took their first loss of the season while visiting Cerritos College on Wednesday, falling to the Falcons 24-26, 25-23, 21-25, 20-25.
The Vikings loss ends a 14-game win streak through two-thirds of their schedule, the largest win streak in the state this year. They came into the game ranked the No. 1 team in the state and No. 2 in Southern California.
From the looks of the first two sets, everyone inside the Cerritos gym on Wednesday, including a rowdy student section, thought they were in for a nailbiter between the top two teams in the South Coast conference. The Vikings fought back from a 20-24 deficit to tie the game at 24 apiece before falling in extra points in the first set. They bounced back in the second with five kills from Tainea Allen to tie the match at a set each.
In the final two sets, the Vikings gave up 19 errors while their miscues and miscommunication seemed to catch up to them. Cerritos went on to steal the third before ending the game in a lopsided fourth set.
Cerritos outside hitter Sydney May poured on a team-high 17 kills and 19 assists in the Falcons win while Leeya Rubio led the game with 24 assists. Monserrat Rodriguez also added 13 kills and a game-high .306 kill percentage.
For LBCC, Tainea Allen ended the match with a game-high 23 kills while Enaya Vaielua collected 9 kills and a team-high 18 assists. Kaylani Moncada also chipped in a game-high 20 digs.
After the match, Vikings head coach Tyler Jackson declined to comment about the loss.
