Pirates keep win streak alive with sweep over Riverside
COSTA MESA -- Karlee Riggs had 17 kills and 10 digs to lead the Orange Coast College women's volleyball team to its ninth straight win -- a three-game sweep over visiting Riverside College on Friday night inside the Peterson Gym, 25-11, 25-18, 25-14.
Sophomore opposite Isabel Emrich played a strong match as well, chipping in with nine kills and a .471 hitting percentage for the second-ranked Pirates (9-0, 3-0 in the Orange Empire Conference), while in the middle, sophomore Morgan Link added six hills.
Setter Allison Lumsden kept the offense moving throughout the night, dishing out 39 assists, while on defense, Dana Nicholson led the way with 10 digs, while Andi Frisina added nine.
Cherylain Dizon had 12 kills to lead the Tigers (6-4, 1-2).
With Coast up 10-7 in the opening set, a five-kill run by Riggs ignited the offense on a 6-0 outburst, putting Coast up 16-7. Four additional kills by Emrich helped put the opening game away for the Pirates.
The Tigers came out with an entirely different lineup in the second set and it worked for awhile as the Tigers stayed close throughout. Eight kills by Dizon in the game helped keep Riverside to within four at 22-18 before a long serve by the Tigers, an Emrich kill and a Riggs service winner closed things out and gave Coast a two-game lead in the match.
It was ALL Orange Coast in the third set as the Pirates stormed out to a 19-5 lead and never looked back.
The intensity level will go up several notches on Wednesday night when the Pirates -- ranked No. 2 in the state poll -- host No. 7 Irvine Valley, beginning at 6 p.m.
