Ventura College volleyball fell to College of the Canyons in the opening round of the SoCal Regional Playoffs, 25-21,25-18,25-20 on Tuesday night. Brittney Mukhar finished with 10 kills, four digs and an ace in the match. Armonee Hunter added nine kills for the Pirates. Jaimelene Salgado dished out 32 assists and picked up eight digs.
Traveling to Santa Clarita, the No. 13-seeded Pirates faced a stiff challenge taking on the No. 4-seeded Cougars, who entered the playoffs with a 22-2 overall record. The Pirates, though, were not intimidated and despite the loss played with the Cougars over the course of the three sets. Ventura was undone by their struggles serving as they ran up 12 unforced service errors in the match providing Canyons with free points.
Ventura, which has seen a resurgence in their program the past two years with back-to-back playoff appearances, showed they were ready to compete with the elite programs in Southern California. The sophomore class was fronted by Mukhar who capped a stellar year with her play, while Tori Hiott added four kills and seven digs in her final match as a Pirate. Salgado and Cassandra Lacanilao additionally wrapped up their VC careers which saw both excel with Salgado taking over as the starting setter this season and Lacanilao stabilizing the Pirate defense from her Libero position.
The Pirates finished the season with a 18-8 overall record and a 7-5 record in Western State Conference North division play. Ventura finished in third place in conference behind the Nos. 1 and 2 seeds for the SoCal Regional Playoffs.