Aztec Volleyball's Comeback Falls Short Against Phoenix College

The Pima Community College volleyball team (8-14, 2-8 in ACCAC) raged in a battle on Wednesday against Phoenix College (6-10, 4-6) as the Aztecs rallied but fell short in the end.

The Aztecs tied the match after dropping the first two sets but lost in the tie-breaker 25-14, 28-26, 17-25, 21-25, 15-7.

After dropping a back-and-forth extended second set, the Aztecs took a 15-14 lead in the third set and from there scored six straight set points to take a 21-14 advantage. Freshman Kylee Ashment (Highland HS) had a block to secure the set-win.

The Aztecs trailed in the fourth set but tied it up at 16-16. Freshman Kayli Riesgo (Cienega HS) had two kills which were followed by three aces from Ashment to give the Aztecs a 21-16 lead. Sophomore Aleksandra Palmer (Thatcher HS) had a couple of kills down the stretch to help the Aztecs tie the match.

In the fifth set tie-breaker, the Aztecs trailed early again but Riesgo had a kill and an ace to tie it at 5-5. The Bears rallied off six straight points to take an 11-5 lead to help them gain the win.

Palmer finished the match with 18 kills and freshman Trae Johnson (Highland HS) had 11 kills. Freshman Hannah Gerard (Canyon del Oro HS) contributed with 19 assists and 15 digs while freshman Anissa Conrad (Sahuaro HS) posted 33 digs. Riesgo had 12 assists and five kills and freshman Gianni Romero (Sahuaro HS) finished with 19 digs. Ashment had four aces.

The Aztecs and the Bears split the regular season head-to-head meetings. Pima beat Phoenix College in five sets on Aug. 31.

The Aztecs will be back at the West Campus Gymnasium on Friday when they host Scottsdale Community College at 7:00 p.m.

Kylee Ashment/Photo by Ben Carbajal