Warriors Survive Upset Bid by Rio Hondo

TORRANCE, Calif. – No. 12 El Camino College needed to overcome a two-set deficit and then outlast visiting Rio Hondo in the fifth set to score a hard-fought 3-2 (19-25, 18-25, 25-17, 25-19, 16-14) South Coast Conference victory Wednesday night at the ECC South Gym.

The Warriors (16-4, 11-0) extended their winning streak to 12 games and remained undefeated in conference, but it was far from easy against the scrappy Roadrunners (11-9, 5-6).

In the first two sets, the Warriors struggled mightily offensively as the Roadrunners outhit ECC .317 to .226 in the opening frame and then .229 to .000 in the second. The Warriors managed just five kills in the second to go along with five errors on 36 swings.

The Warriors picked it up in the third, firing a match-high 18 kills in the frame with just two errors. Kayla Conley had a monster game in the third, smashing down seven of her nine kills on nine swings without an error. Mikayla Clark and Ginia Goods added five and four kills respectively; also without committing an error.

Despite that, the Roadrunners kept hanging around as the teams were tied eight times and traded the lead on six occasions in the third. They cut ECC's lead to 19-16 but got no closer as the Warriors ran off five straight points to gain eight set points. A service error erased one but Conley's seventh kill of the frame put the Warriors on the board.

In the fourth, the Warriors led most of the way in a sloppy offensive set for both sides. Neither team hit better than .100 in the frame but the Warriors were able to secure the set and force a fifth.

The Warriors appeared to take control early on in the fifth, taking an early 5-2 lead. But the Roadrunners put together a 7-1 scoring run to take a 9-6 advantage. The Warriors clawed back, with three of the next four to trim the deficit to one.

It stayed close until the end as the teams were tied 14-14 before kills from Conley and Clark put the match away and gave ECC a tough home victory.

Clark finished with 17 kills and 11 digs while Conely had 12 kills with a .379 attacking percentage. Caitlin Donatucci had a great match with 43 assists and 13 digs while Kelly Donatucci and Cassidy Crosby led the defense with 27 and 24 digs respectively.

The Warriors will return to action on the road Friday against Pasadena. First serve is set for 6 p.m.