Black / Blue times Two

It was Lompoc / Cabrillo day one of the 2009-2010 season, with 5 competitions in two different sports. The results were lop-sided with the Conquistadors winning all 5 contests, but the Braves did better than many expected. All in all, it was also a pretty good day for Belgium.

Above: Lompoc Librero Christina Inda is congratulated by JV Coach Ramona Rogers after she completed singing the National Anthem to start the festivities.



GIRLS VOLLEYBALL
The Conqs won at all three levels, but it wasn't easy. Cabrillo has demonstrated early on in the season that they are contending for a playoff berth, and the Braves have shown that the work done over the last 3 years is beginning to reach fruition. Lompoc can compete with just about any team in the area.

Coach Aaron Batula tries to find a line-up that can beat the Conqs.




The diminutive (Listed at 5-2. Really ?)Inda would love to pursue singing, the stage, and/or volleyball after leaving LHS, but she plans to become a nurse.

Varsity


Cabrillo 3, Lompoc 0 [25-18, 25-16, 25-20]Sue Slavins absence due to illness handed the hot potato to assistant Jim Hilliard. What hot potato ? The job of dealing with a much improved Lompoc volleyball unit.


Hilliard delivered a impassioned speech to the team during a timeout with the score 10-8 in game one. But the Braves were still hanging tough , down 13-11, when the Cabrillo serve took them out. Kaylee Long started it off with 3 unreturnables and a Jessica Rucinski kill. Then another kill by Tiffany Lee, and 3 more aces by Cathy Lynes, gave the visitors a 20-13 lead that they turned into a 25-18 final score.

Long had 3 additional aces and a kill of her own to expand a two point (14-12) lead to six, and blow open game #2. Kady DeTemple had a 4 serve string aided by two Jenna Hilliard stuffs, and Kiley Adridge had 3 consecutive serves to end the game.


Game 3 looked like it might be a blowout -it wasn't. With Hilliard behind the line, the Conqs raced out to a 6-0 lead. The Braves battled back. Not scoring in bunches, but steadily picking up points until they trailed only 20-18. It went back-and-forth for a while longer, then with Cabrillo 23-20, Cloe Huggins pounded down one of her many kills and a service ace to win the match.
Chloe Huggins receiving a 'high-five' from the Record's Brad Memberto after a post-game interview.



Kelly O'Connell kept contributing key plays (digs, kills, etc.) throughout the match. Libero Colby Edman was solid defensively and also helped the serve squads dominance. She had one of the game-turning plays when her serve just nicked the line to put Cabrillo up 22-18 in game 3.




The Braves had something not often seen on Bryan Ayer Court in recent times - a truly strong, athletic, and relatively tall front line. Brandy Machado & Erica Slikker have stepped it up this year and are joined by the newly acquired 6-1 shot blocker Helene Edelberg (above with Casey Stumpo). They were able to score points at times almost solely by intimidation, which helped give confidence to the entire team.

Coach Hilliard credited the win to "Long's serving, Chloe's hitting, and great team defense." All true. The Conqs got excellent hitting from several players and their defense was great. But so did, and so were, the Braves. Lompoc played well as a team, but the difference was that they never could quite overcome the Conqs serving prowess.

Junior Varsity
The Cabrillo JV won in two, 25-10 and 25-14. The Braves put together a few serving streaks, but not enough of them. Kayla Lown recorded 4 aces for the Conqs and Felicia Bowen posted 4 kills for the match.

Frosh
The Cabrillo squad downed the Braves in straight games 25-12, 25-13.

GIRLS TENNIS

The Netters got things started at 3 pm with the varsity girls playing at Lompoc's Dave Bickmore Courts, while the JV squads were up on the hill.

Varsity
Cabrillo 15, Lompoc 3

Cabrillo was 7-2 in singles, 8-1 in doubles as the somewhat more experienced Conqs thumped a very green Lompoc contingent.

Singles
Veterans Ashley Pennewell (6-0,6-0,6-1) and Julie Leyva (6-3,6-1,6-0) swept and Kaitlyn Phillips picked up a point (6-1) over Emily Tremblay. Sameeha Husayn (6-0) and Nicole Nomany (6-3) each won a set for the Braves.

Doubles

Sisters Nikki & Elke Peirtsegaele (left) swept (6-1,6-0,6-1), as did Bree Piper-Williams & Ashley Bowman (6-2,6-2,6-3). The Conqs #3 Duo, Andrianna Siefe & Alana Taber, lost (6-1) to the Braves #1's Azucena Villalobos & Korina Esqueda, but won their first set ( 6-0) over Julie Abrego & Rosa Carreno and their closer in a tight 6-4 set versus the #2's Jessica Cosio & Ashley Branson. Gold Vang & Elena Bastianelli replaced Abrego / Carreno as the Lompoc #3's in the second & third rounds.


Junior Varsity
Cabrillo 17, Lompoc 1

As green as the Braves Varsity is, the JV are even greener - and it showed. The Conqs rolled to five sweeps, with only sophomore Cera Mitchell grabbing a point (6-4) for Lompoc at #1 singles.

Singles
Cabrillo: #1- Julie 'Noah' de Vonage 6-1, 6-0, 6-0; #2- Alex Siefe 6-1, 6-0, 6-1; #3- Kaylin Rentschler 4-6, 6-1, 6-0. Besides Mitchell, the Braves were represented by newcomers Diep Chang and Sarah Castillo.

Doubles
The scorekeepers had trouble staying up with this one - Lompoc used 9 players and Cabrillo use 12. However, all 9 substitutions came in the 3rd round. The starting 6 for CHS were Lauren Dalton / Eloisa Castilla (6-2, 6-1), Kim Smith / Ashley Trolio (6-4, 6-3), and Sam Warner / Kelsey Atkin (6-0, 6-1). In the final round they were replaced by Blayke Long / Prescilla Tran (6-1), Krystal Delos Reyes / Becca Robinson-Thomas (6-2), and Morgan Coffin / Morgan Williams respectively. The multiple Morgans won the best set of the day a 7-6 [13-11] tiebreaker over Karin Martin / Miriam Lopez - the Braves #2 pair.

At #1 for the Braves were Catalina Perez / Janett Ruiz for the initial rounds, with Maribel Martinez replacing Ruiz in round 3. Isela Caudillo / Jennifer Magana also played two sets, before letting Melanie Esparza / Naomi Guevara take a whack at #3 doubles.



. . . . Oh, about Belgium. The Peirstsegaele sisters' dad is from Belgium & so is LHS exchange student and volleyball middle blocker Helene Edelberg - shown with host dad Stan.