The Vikings keep on rolling with a 3-0 sweep over the San Diego Mesa Olympians in the CCCAA state semi-finals on Thursday.
With this game, the Vikings improve to a 19-1 record and increase their win streak to 18 games.
The first set was dominated by the Vikings as they continuously had big kills from hitters Matthew Pennala, Georgi Binev and Cole Oliver.
“My whole year I’ve been trying to get better and get ready to go to the next level,” said Oliver.
The first set ended with a score of 25-16 with the final point coming from a kill by Binev.
The second set was even more of a blowout as the score ended 25-12 thanks to a fantastic defensive effort from the Vikings.
Attacks from the Olympians were combated with big blocks from the Vikings by Cian Slade, Georgi Binev, Sean Nguyen and Matthew Pennala.
“We were able to just stay together throughout the whole match, especially during those first two sets where we were just dominating,” said Pennala.
A slow start to the third set gave the Olympians an early edge. San Diego had solid serves, multiple kills and put the Vikings on their heels.
LBCC would battle back and reclaim the lead. It was a back-and-forth affair the rest of the set.
“We just got lost in the moment, I think we had to recenter ourselves and luckily there was enough game left for us to do that and catch back up,” said Vikings head coach Jonathan Charette.
After a close set, the Vikings would edge out Mesa 25-22 on a service error by the Olympians.
“I think it was a combination of us having a lot of momentum and maybe misusing it a little bit,” said Pennala, “maybe that confidence we had going into the third set turned into a little bit of cockiness.”
“San Diego Mesa did a good job of applying a lot of service pressure on us…but the guys refocused, trusted on each other, leaned on each other and they did a good job,” said coach Charette.
Outside hitter Matthew Pennala goes up for a kill against San Diego Mesa in the CCCAA semifinals at El Camino College on April 27, 2023. Emily D’Amico) 
Middle blocker Cian Slade goes up for a kill against San Diego Mesa in the CCCAA semifinals at El Camino College on April 27, 2023. The Vikings beat San Diego Mesa 3-0 on Thursday. (Emily D’Amico) 
Opposite/outside hitter Georgi Binev and middle blocker Lucca Mamone throw up a block against San Diego Mesa’s opposite Austin Kinnear in the CCCAA semifinals at El Camino College on April 27, 2023. (Emily D’Amico) 
Middle blocker Cian Slade goes up for a kill against San Diego Mesa in the CCCAA semifinals at El Camino College on April 27, 2023. The Vikings beat San Diego Mesa 3-0 on Thursday. (Emily D’Amico) 
Outside hitter Matthew Pennala puts up a jump serve against San Diego Mesa in the CCCAA semifinals at El Camino College on April 27, 2023. The Vikings are ranked number one in the state at the community college level and currently hold a record of 19-1 this season. (Emily D’Amico) 
Setter Sean Nguyen puts up a block against San Diego Mesa in the CCCAA semifinals at El Camino College on April 27, 2023. (Emily D’Amico) 
Outside hitter Cole Oliver goes up for a kill against San Diego Mesa in the CCCAA semifinals at El Camino College on April 27, 2023. The Vikings are ranked number one in the state at the community college level and currently hold a record of 19-1 this season. (Emily D’Amico)
With this win, the Vikings are in position to win their 11th state championship in history.
“All these guys have t-shirts that say ‘Road to 11’ so this is a goal that they’ve been working towards since the fall, we’re excited to be here, we’re excited to go back to Long Beach City, practice, and then come back here and be in the moment,” said coach Charette.
The Vikings will take on Orange Coast College in the finals on Saturday, April 29 at El Camino College at 7:00 p.m.