SBCC won a pair of nonconference men’s volleyball matches in opposite fashion on Saturday at Santa Monica College, sweeping past San Diego Mesa 30-24, 30-22, 30-25, then storming back to top Grossmont 25-30, 30-25, 25-30, 30-26, 16-14.
Libero Andrew Thomason had a stellar performance with 18 digs in the first match and 30 against Grossmont.
“He kept us in the second match,” said coach Melody Parker.
Pete Aronchik hit .333 and Jonathan Newton finished at .285 against Mesa. Miles Evans and Justin Hertlein led the Vaqueros (2-0) in kills with 10 and eight, respectively. Setter Kaahukane Leite-AhYo had 71 assists on the day, including 53 in the nightcap.
Hertlein, a 6-4 freshman opposite, had 26 kills in the five-game win. Evans added 18 and hit .340 while Aronchik had 14 putaways.
The Vaqueros trailed 11-7 in the decisive fifth game before Thomason served an ace to put the visitors ahead and Hertlein got hot. “Justin pounded some balls and helped on some key blocks, then they (Grossmont) made some errors and it was over,” said Parker.
It was their second win over Grossmont in a week. On Jan. 30, the Vaqueros overcame an 11-3 deficit in a one-game consolation final and beat the Griffins 31-29 at the Long Beach Tournament.
SBCC makes its home debut on Tuesday against Golden West at 7 p.m.
