Falcons topple Sierra in 5-set thriller!

A raucous Falcon Gymnasium crowd witnessed one of the closest and most exciting volleyball matches in FLC' s history on Wednesday night as the Falcons outlasted Sierra College in a roller-coaster five-set match, 22-25, 25-18, 25-15, 25-27, 17-15.  The Wolverines arrived in Folsom ranked #8 in California and sitting in first place in the Big 8 at 3-0, but the Falcons refused to be intimidated by the taller visitors.  After falling behind in the first set, the Falcons made a late run of seven consecutive points to close to within two at 22-24 before Sierra closed the door.  That late run, however, helped build the Falcons' confidence as they easily won the next two sets.  With a 2-1 set lead, the fourth set again saw the Falcons fall behind before running off a string of points to tie the score at 23.  When Sierra finally prevailed 27-25, the stage was set for a winner-take-all fifth set.  The final set saw the Falcons jump out to a quick lead, but the Wolverines responded and tied the match at 8.   The Falcons then took a 14-10 lead, but again Sierra refused to quit and tied it at 14.  With a vocal contingent of FLC softball and basketball players rooting them on, the Falcons finally got the two-point lead for the victory at 17-15.   Freshman defensive specialist Cassondra ('Mighty') Gomez –despite being the smallest player on the floor - was huge for the Falcons, fueling several runs of five or more points while she served.  Caitlin Dillon was again the offensive force for the Falcons, hitting over and through the taller Sierra blockers time and again.  Alicia Wilson and Valerie Hutton combined to neutralize the Sierra hitters and also scored several points off quick sets in the middle. 

With the win, the Falcons improved to 9-3 overall and are in a logjam with three teams in second place in the Big 8 at 3-1.  They face a huge test on Saturday when they travel to Gilroy for the Gavilan College Tournament, where they'll face Gavilan,  the #2 ranked team in California.