Cougars drop two in season opener at Napa Classic

On Wednesday, Sept. 1, the Cougars faced off in a doubleheader against Napa Valley College and Ohlone College in the Napa Classic.

Lassen (0-2) started off their first match against Napa Valley with strong plays at the net by Grace Felton and Josephine Booth but the Napa Valley Storm proved a challenge with their tough serving and relentless defense. The Cougars went on to be defeated in three sets by the storm (20-25, 13-25, 18-25).

The Cougs second match of the day was against the Ohlone College Renegades who came armed with heavy hitters. In particular, Clare Mannion Deal for the Renegades had an all-around strong match and greatly challenged the Cougars. Despite this, outside hitters Booth and Kyler Smith held their own and kept Lassen in the match. Their smart swings and touches on the block gave the Lassen defense a chance to make plays. The Cougars went down 3-0 (23-25, 12-25, 21-25).

“The match scores do not accurately represent the effort and hustle that was shown in both matches,” said Erickson. “This is a young team, and they showed their age today.  Once we get a couple of key hitters involved regularly I have confidence our match scores will look much different.”

Lassen travels to Monterey on Sept. 10 for the Monterey Peninsula Classic where they will meet Merced College and Cuesta College.