At the end of an action-packed Orange Out Saturday, the Beavers faced Occidental College and emerged with a season sweep against their SCIAC rival.
It was a highly-anticipated rematch after Caltech’s earlier four-set victory over the Tigers on their own court.
The two teams held pace with one another in the opening set before Occidental pulled ahead with a five-point run, only for Caltech to reply with six consecutive points and regain the lead at 12-10. Caltech caught fire later on with the score tied at 18, scoring in seven of the final nine rallies to claim the set 25-20.
The Beavers had a strong start in the second set before falling just short 25-21, and the momentum was favoring Oxy through the beginning of the third set as they racked up a 14-6 lead over Caltech after a 10-1 run. Unfazed, the team fought back, tallying two points for every one the Tigers could score and serving up some pivotal aces to come all the way back and tie the score at 19. Another late surge pushed the Beavers ahead for good with a 25-23 set-winning score.
Caltech looked to put away the Tigers in four again, building up an 18-15 lead before a late surge by the guests gave them a 25-22 set win, pushing the match into a decisive fifth set. But from there, it was all Caltech as the Tigers struggled to hit accurately, and a pair of critical kills by first-year Brittany Rosario (San Juan, PR / San Juan Math, Science and Tech Center) along with a service ace by Alize Bakker (Portland, Ore. / Westview) to finish the set and the match with a 15-4 score.
“I loved the spirit and determination that we played with through the ups and downs of a five-set match” said Head Coach Tom Gardner following the triumph. “When the fifth set started, I could see that we knew we would win, and we took every opportunity to make it happen. I’m so proud of our women.”
Rosario and Bakker combined for 25 kills, Rosario leading the team with 13 and adding five digs and Bakker following with 12 kills and 12 digs. The Beavers were particularly effective from the service line, dealing out 14 aces in the match and at least one from every server. Bakker also led the match in that category with four aces, followed by Karen Cao (North Potomac, Md. / Montgomery Blair) and Giulia Murgia (Iglesias, Italy / Istituto di Istruzione Superiore G. Asproni) who each tallied three. Celine Wu (Potomoc, Md. / Montgomery Blair) kept numerous rallies alive with a match-high 19 digs, and Lana Saopraseuth (Vancouver, Wash. / Union HS) led Caltech in assists with 17.
Gardner and the Beavers will return to action on Saturday, Nov. 2 on the road against the Cal Lutheran Regals.