In one of the most consistently well fought home games of the season, the Caltech Men's club volleyball team defeated Pomona-Pitzer in three straight games, a score which belies the excitement of the match. Caltech came in to the match having already beaten Pomona-Pitzer 3-0 in an away game and 2-0 in the tournament which they hosted. Perhaps expecting another easy victory, the beaver squad was surprised by the intensity of the opposing team right off the bat.
In front of a crowd of more than 20 wildly screaming fans, tech started Joe White at setter, Mike Machczynski at opposite, Joel Jones and Andreas Masuhr at outside hitter, and Gary Leskowitz and Andrea Borgioli at middle blocker. Pomona scored the first two points, and then caltech came back to start a raging see-saw battle which went all the way to 10-10. Looking for a momentum swing, coaches Suzanne Masuhr and Aaron Kiely called a timeout to "rally the troops." That much sought after momentum boost was provided by Gary Leskowitz and Andreas Masuhr who with a few well placed and well timed hits got the team rolling to an eventual 15-10 victory.
The second game provided a new look for all involved, moving Mike Machczynski to give Joe White a well deserved rest at setter, shifting Andrea Borgioli over to opposite and bringing in Ken Wiberg to replace him. This game started out sloppily, there were more lifts and double hits called against the setters on both sides in the first half of game 2 than in the rest of the match. Caltech was unable to sustain any momentum and Pomona-Pitzer jumped out to an early 6-2 lead. This sloppiness was not confined to the court. In easily the worst call of the game, a badly shanked ball went over the head of the Pomona setter, who tried to punch the ball over the net. He failed, and with nobody else on his team nearby, he dug the ball out of the net to continue play, a clear double hit. The ref, not seeing the first hit, ruled it fairly played to the shock of the players, the fans, and the linesmen. She later said "I needed an instant replay on that one." Another timeout reminded tech to ignore the plays of the past and focus on the end of the game. Coming out of this, the beavers went on a 11-2 run taking control of the game and never looking back, finally finishing 15-11.
The final game brought Steve Sears in at outside and Nick Lorenzen at middle to cement caltech's victory. Pomona was never really able to mount another offensive and caltech took the final game 15-5. With this win and a 3-2 victory at LA City College, Tech brought its record to 10-0. Looking to improve on this, Caltech will be hosting Mt. San Antonio College on Saturday the 14th at 3pm in Brown Gym. Scores from previous matches, the schedule for future ones, and a team picture can be found on the Men's Club Volleyball Team Website at http://www.cco.caltech.edu/~vball/VB.home.html.
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