It was all treats for the SBCC women’s volleyball team on Halloween Night as the Vaqueros swept L.A. Mission 25-17, 25-19, 25-8 in 63 minutes at the Sports Pavilion.
Freshman Jenna Anderson had 12 kills, eight digs and hit .409 as her team tied a school record with its 12th straight win. The first-place Vaqueros (14-6, 8-0 WSC North), ranked No. 11 in Southern Cal, haven’t lost in nearly six weeks.
Middle hitter Bianca Castro added 10 kills, three blocks and hit .600 for SBCC, which completed a 6-1 home campaign and has won 37 of the last 41 at home. Castro was one of five players honored on Sophomore Night, along with Emily Banas (6 kills), Mackenzie Mexico (6 digs), Kaitlin Dolan and Erika Bellitt.
“It was Sophomore Night and this is the last time I’m going to be playing in this gym,” said Castro, a 6-footer from Dos Pueblos High. “It’s been a special place for me. I didn’t feel any pressure, I just wanted to play and have a really good time.”
Castro had a lot of fun with the “slide” spike, where she loops around behind the setter to blast away from the right side. She had a kill and two blocks early in the third set when the Vaqueros jumped ahead 14-3.
“It’s called the slide because it’s a right-side hit and I come around on one foot and turn my body, so it’s more of a cross-court angle. That’s one of my favorite hits.”
The Vaqueros built an 11-3 lead to open the match, thanks to four kills by Banas. There were six ties in the second set before the Vaqueros went on a 9-5 run and took a 20-16 on a slide kill by Castro. Banas capped the 25-19 win with a spike off the block.
Head coach Ed Gover used most of his players and 12 Vaqueros had at least one kill. The outside hitters only made seven hitting errors.
“We had great chemistry tonight and bonded together,” said Gover. “The whole atmosphere was togetherness and it really showed on the court. They didn’t let things drop, they passed fantastic and Bianca was at her best today. She was Peter Pan out there … or Tinkerbell.
“Our bench played great tonight and I have to credit Armen (Zakarian), who runs practices that allow everyone to compete. We call them “Battles” and everyone knows where they stand. So when its their turn to go in, they’re ready to go.”
The Vaqueros play their last two regular-season matches on the road — Wednesday at Hancock and Nov. 9 at second-place Moorpark.
