No. 25 Canyons Drops Duel vs. No. 6 Bakersfield

The Cougars (5-10, 4-1) won a dominating second set to tie the match, but dropped the next two by a combined six points.

No. 25 College of the Canyons dropped its conference match vs. No. 6 Bakersfield College by a 3-1 (19-25, 25-12, 22-25, 22-25) final score on Friday. The two teams were separated by just six points down the stretch. —Mari Kneisel/COC Sports Information
No. 25 College of the Canyons dropped its conference match vs. No. 6 Bakersfield College by a 3-1 (19-25, 25-12, 22-25, 22-25) final score on Friday. The two teams were separated by just six points down the stretch. —Mari Kneisel/COC Sports Information
Video Box Score

Team Stats

October 25, 2021

By Jesse Muñoz/COC Sports Information Director 

No. 25 College of the Canyons had its four-game win streak end at the hands of No. 6 Bakersfield College on Friday, as the Cougars managed to tie the match at 1-1 before dropping the next two sets by a combined six points. Set scores were 19-25, 25-12, 22-25, 22-25.

Canyons (5-10, 4-1) excelled from behind the line with 13 aces on the night, compared to just five from the Renegades (13-1, 7-0). However, Bakersfield combined to hit .317 in the match with just seven errors.

The Cougars posted a dominating second set, more than doubling the Renegade point total at 25-12. But despite some good runs, Canyons couldn't get the stops it needed down the stretch. Just six points separated the two teams across the final two frames.

COC sophomore Damani Harvey and freshman Jaqueline Ibarra led the Cougars and tied for the game high with 15 kills each. That mark tied with Bakersfield's Tia Jules. Harvey's night also included 13 digs and two aces.

Caitlin Liebe ended the evening with five kills and three block assists at the net for the Cougars. Breanna Kelley also checked in with five kills and an assisted block.

Liebe and Harvey are tied for the team lead in kills at 127.

Freshman Abby Sherman was active with 40 assists and 13 digs to go with a game-high seven aces.

Isabella Embleton chipped in with three aces and nine digs, Rhiannon Boddy added 10 digs, six assists and an ace of her own to round out the Cougars' statistical leaders.

Canyons is currently third in the Western State Conference (WSC), South Division standings behind first place Bakersfield and runner-up Santa Monica College (10-6, 5-1).

The Cougars will have a chance to improve on their conference position at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 27, then they travel to take on the Corsairs.

Up first, a rescheduled non-conference match vs. No. 10 Moorpark College on Tuesday, Oct. 26. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Stay up to date on all this season's action by following the College of the Canyons Athletic department on social media at @COCathletics on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. 

—Photo by Mari Kneisel/COC Sports Information