The Cuesta Cougars hosted #14 Ventura for their final match at home against Western State Conference North Division.  The Pirates jumped out early in the first set, 20-9, and took control of the match as the won the opener, 25-14.  The Cougars also fell behind early in the second set, 20-13, but chased down the Bucs in a comeback that fell just short.  The Cougars went of a 7-3 run to close the gap to 23-20, before losing control of the match, 25-20.  The Cougars and Pirates continued to trade points to start the final set, however Ventura closed strong with a 10-3 run to reach set point, 24-13.  Cuesta regrouped after its final time out and won four straight points, before succumbing to their ranked foes, 25-17.  Returning Freshman Christelle Mouret (Morro Bay HS) was all over the court as she winds down her career at Cuesta.  She led the Cougars with nine kills, 14 digs and a pair of service aces.  She currently leads the Cougars with 44 aces on the season, which is only one off the school record of 45 set in 2014 by current Cuesta Coach Whitney Meyer.  Freshman Southpaw Whitney Thompson (Arroyo Grande HS) added seven more kills on offense, while Setter Kelsey Courtney (Cincinnati, OH) dished out 18 assists and collected double-digit digs for the Cougars' cause.  The Cougars are 10-8 overall and 2-5 in the WSC-North

The Spikers close out their WSC-North schedule on the road against LA Pierce, this Friday (6 PM) in Woodland Hills, and LA Mission, next Wednesday (6 PM) in Sylmar.  They still have three more home games scheduled, including a pair of make-up games against Bakersfield and Antelope Valley, but tonight they followed tradition and honored their five departing players prior to this evening's game.  The Cougars only have two true sophomores on their roster, Morgan Krause (Santa Maria: Pioneer Valley HS) and Ashley Hale-Tignor (Red Bluff HS), however "Returning Freshmen", a Covid-year term, Mouret, Riley Thompson (Atascadero: SLO Classical) and Abby Luciano (Arroyo Grande HS) are also putting the finishing touches on their time at Cuesta.  

Season Service Aces

Rank         Player                           Year        Aces

1             Whitney Meyer               2014        45

2             CHRISTELLE MOURET    2021        44

3             Mariah Hall                     2017        43

4             Kati Purchase                 2004        42

               Sara Kidd                        2008        42

               Kelly Cole                       2017        42

               SaVannah Spinharney   2018        42

8             Amy Woodman               1999       39

               Rhylan Lakes                  2016       39

               Kassidy Hamer               2017       39