Irvine Valley women’s volleyball team is currently undefeated and ranked No. 1 in the state. In Wednesday’s game, they proved they are a force to be reckoned with as they dominated the Hornets the entire game.

The Hornets women’s volleyball team was swept last night against the Lasers 3-0, (20-25, 21-25, 16-25).

Fullerton and Irvine Valley came out firing in the first set, as both teams exchanged points on the board early in the game. After a successful serve, freshman outside hitter Amanda Henderson was able to get up to the net for a kill that gave the Hornets a 5-3 lead. The Lasers battled back and took the lead against Fullerton who had unsuccessful digs to the ground that were narrowly missed.

Fullerton responded with a kill by sophomore outside hitter Lauren Schaefer to take back the momentum and lead the set, 11-9. A point scoring block by Henderson and middle blocker Samaria Longstreet at the net helped the Hornets steal the lead. Irvine Valley battled back to take the lead 17-14. This caused the Hornets to take a timeout.

Fullerton was able to come back and score on the next rally. The Lancers continued to widen their lead against the Hornets by capitalizing on empty spaces and missed digs. Fullerton called for another time out when Irvine Valley got four quick points and pushed the led to 20-16. Fullerton continued to put up a fight to close the gap, but the Lancers overpowered the Hornets by adding five points extending the lead to 20-16 and capturing game one.

During the second set a quick side set by Fullerton’s sophomore setter Kailyn “KK” Case, had Irvine Valley scrambling on defense but still able to return the ball over the net. Case is a force on the court as she leads the team with .

A notably long rally had Henderson and Longstreet working together blocking at the net three separate times, but the rally ended with a kill from defensive specialist Andrea Lopez to add a point for Fullerton. This did not stop Irvine Valley who came back with a 15-12 lead, forcing a Fullerton time out.

Right out of a time out, the Hornets were able to shrink the gap on the scoreboard. Henderson executed a ‘pancake’ dive to save the ball from hitting the ground and keep it in play to gain a point for Fullerton during their push to take the lead.

As the set continued, Case once again brought out her quick side set. This time she was able to send the ball right into a hole left by the Lasers to bring Fullerton within two points, 20-22. With the game in reach, Fullerton forced Irvine Valley to call a time out. Moments later, Fullerton was unable to capitalize on its drive and loss 21-25.

In the final set Fullerton scored the first point off Irvine Valley’s serve. The set mirrored the previous with the score remaining close between the two teams. Hornets Henderson spiked the ball over the net and the Lasers were unable to return bringing the score to 6-7.

Fullerton called a timeout as it began to trail 11-14, regaining their focus to be ready for the Laser’s aggressive offense. Back on the court the Hornets were able to score points after Schaefer’s big kill that sent the ball into the empty space left by Irvine Valley. Fullerton continued to work towards taking back its earlier the lead, but the Lasers offense triumphed over the Hornets defense for a final score of 16-25.

Fullerton Head Coach Megan Glennie said she expected the team to battle and compete a little bit more against the Lasers. “We’ll continue growing and learning from this loss,” Glennie added.

The Hornets next game is at home against Orange Coast College on Wednesday Oct. 31 at 6 p.m.