City College Women’s Volleyball team won its third straight Western State Conference North title Wednesday evening, beating Cuesta College in straight sets.
Ranked 12 in the state, the Vaqueros came out on top with scores 25-18, 25-13, and 25-15, reaching the 16 wins in 17 games.
“I really enjoy that the players work so hard and are able to get a reward for their effort,” Head Coach Ed Gover said. “They deserve it.”
In the first set, City College picked up a 6-2 lead early forcing Cuesta into a time out.
The extra time didn’t help the cougars at all following strong gameplay from Madelon Leiphardt (No.7) and Freshman Katelynn Womack (No.18). The Vaqueros kept a three to five point cushion the entire set, winning 25-18.
“They tried hard and it was a close game but we were stronger,” Womack said. “It helps our confidence when you’re ahead and you can just keep going.”
And that is exactly what the Vaqueros did in the second set. They kept going and with a four kill streak they wound up with another early lead 6-1.
“It’s a better feeling because you can relax and you know that you still have a chance if you lose a point,” Leiphardt said. “That’s why we always try to get a good start.”
Both teams played really well and when Cuesta started to gain momentum with a three kill streak, Sophomore Taylor Badois (No.9) stepped up with a big play and shut down the cougars flow with a timely block, growing the lead to 19-13 for the home team.
“Taylor was on fire today,” Gover said. “She found a good rhythm and produced well for us.”
With that block City College went on a seven point tear dominating the second set, winning 25-13.
In the last set with serve aces from both Badois and Freshman Tristen Thompson (No.16) City College controlled the rest of the way.
“We train a lot of serves and we want to be efficient and focused,” Gover said. “And this was one of our best games, with serving.”
After that the Vaqueros easily fought off the Cougars and won the third set with scores 25-15.
Now the State Playoffs are waiting for City College and are set for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 25 at the Sports Pavilion.
Opponents are still unknown and groups will be seeded on Saturday, Nov 22, but no matter what, the Vaqueros are ready.
“We will watch videos when we know our opponents,” Leiphardt said. “And we will keep working on improvement to be able to stop them.”
