Pirates conquer OEC with perfection
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Orange Coast | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
|
Cypress | 18 | 13 | 18 | 0 |
COSTA MESA -- The Orange Coast College women's volleyball team captured the Orange Empire Conference championship after a four-set win over Golden West College last week inside the Peterson Gym.
For the Pirates, 24 matches have yielded 24 wins after Coast (24-0, 15-0 in the OEC) topped the Rustlers 25-11, 25-20, 17-25, 25-18, followed by a 25-18, 25-23, 25-18 road win at Cypress College on Wednesday. It's the second OEC title in a row for the Pirates after going 15-1 in 2024.
In the win over the Rustlers, Nika Safavi had a monster night with 21 kills and 22 digs. Kayla Ihrig was on Safavi's heels with 19 kills, six digs, two blocks and two aces. Setter Sophie Vienna dished out 46 assists, while libero Kennedy Cutler notched 17 digs.
With just one match remaining in the regular season -- at Fullerton College on Friday at 6 p.m. -- the Pirates are just one win away from running the tables on the opposition heading into postseason play.
Coast has dropped just seven sets, while winning 72 sets this season with 18 three-set sweeps. OCC has won 45-of-47 sets in OEC play with sweeps in 13-of-15.
Against the Chargers on Wednesday, Safavi paced the offense with 19 kills, while Ihrig added seven kills to go along with a team-best 15 digs.
The last undefeated run like this for the Pirates came all the way back in 2005, when Coast ran the tables on a 26-0 season and a state championship.
Playoff seedings will be announced this weekend, so be sure to log onto www.occpirateathletics.com for the latest playoff information as it becomes available.
