The vibes were incredible at the beach as three colleges traveled down to the Newland Courts at Huntington Beach on Friday, March 7. Riverside College, Fullerton College and Santa Ana College were all in attendance to play two matches against each other.
To start off the games, Hitt stated that Fullerton had to sacrifice one of the games due to a shortage of players, so the Hornets had to start at a disadvantage being down 1-0.
All four courts played at the same time and the first couple of points from each court went in Riverside’s direction.
Sophomore Izzy Hernandez and Freshman Bri Stotemore of Fullerton College played on Court One and the two of them had a compelling game playing against a tough duo from Riverside.
The first set started off very competitively as neither team was getting scored on easily. Stotemore had some well-placed serves, one of them putting the team up 7-5 with an ace against her opponent. Stotemore and Hernandez had great chemistry together and communicated throughout every point which helped the duo secure some points against the Tigers. However, Riverside was excellent with digs to keep many balls in play, making it difficult for Fullerton to close out points. The Hornets had a lead of 20-17 but unfortunately could not bury the Tigers and lost five straight points to lose the first set 22-20.
Even though the first set ended in a loss, Hitt was impressed with the performance of Stotemore and Hernandez.
“Most proud of the way that they’ve stayed in the game, their heads have stayed in the game and we’ve shown no signs of frustration thus far,” said Hitt.
The second set had notable moments such as Stotemore’s pokes to get the ball to drop right in front of the net out of reach from Riverside and a good collective effort from both Hernandez and Stotemore diving for digs. Ultimately the duo would go down 21-11 in set two and lose the game.
Across the sand, Court Two had Hornets players Angie Alvarado and Sophia Freiboth taking on their opponents in an exciting matchup. The first set remained close as both teams displayed great hustle chasing down balls and keeping the ball alive. Riverside would pull through to win the first set 21-17.
The second set was the last standing set of the day. Alvarado and Freiboth would look to keep the set alive to get Fullerton a win. They found themselves down 18-13. On game point, they lost to a let serve which dropped out of reach for the duo. Set two ended 21-14.
Court 3 had the combination of Brianna Mendez and Kennedy Dobrea. They held up strong, containing Riverside well and forcing them to hit good shots. After a battle, they would lose both sets. 21-19 and 21-17.
Dobrea is the youngest player on the team by far and she is only 16 years old. She stated that she wasn’t sure where her career was headed after high school and she is happy being able to play for Fullerton.
“I thought I wasn’t going to be able to play on a team other than club after high school. So, I’m really excited that I’m able to do this. There hasn’t been much of a difference other than I’m continually challenging myself. I know I put myself at a disadvantage, but I enjoy pushing myself,” said Dobrea
The fourth court was Jozette Mina and Samantha Largent of Fullerton. Hitt stated that they just had begun playing beach volleyball and have been doing fantastic.
Fullerton gave a strong performance, but ended up losing both sets.
Hitt was in great spirits after the match and he enjoyed the way the team showed out on the beach and believes the players can only go up from here.
Hitt is an award-winning Esports journalist currently the editor-at-large for the Esports Advocate. Hitt has also done work for ESPN, Sports Business Journal, The Esports Observer and RotoWire.
“The thing about the sport is this. You’re trying to attain perfection knowing you can’t achieve it. You can’t ever be perfect at the game of volleyball. It’s impossible. I need them to understand that and I think they’re doing very well,” said Hitt.
