Rustlers lose heartbreaker in 5 sets

Golden West rallied from a 2-0 deficit to tie the match, but fell just short to Palomar by a 25-23, 25-21, 12-25, 18-25, 19-17 score at home.

Set 1 was back-and-forth the entire way. Something had to give as Palomar (5-5, 2-1) was able to capture the victory thanks to the fantastic offensive play of Anthony Pippen and Nick Supple.

Golden West (5-5, 1-2) and Palomar went blow-for-blow again in the second set as it was tied late 20-20. Unfortunately for the Rustlers, the Comets scored 3 points in a row and the lead was enough to secure the win. Pippen and Supple were right in the mix again as both put up insane numbers finishing the match with 25 kills and 20 kills respectively.

Unlike the first two sets, Golden West dominated in set 3 from start to finish. What stood out for the Rustlers was the middle tandem of Bert Peyton and DJ Koenen. Peyton tallied 12 kills on the night and Koenen was right behind him with 10. Both players earned their keep in the middle tallying 5 blocks apiece. Outside hitters Jared Chasse and Garrett Covey were big contributors as well recording 12 kills and 10 kills correspondingly.

Dominating play did not last long as the fourth set went back to back-and-forth action. This time, Golden West was able to pull away after tying the score at 13. The Rustlers would go on a 6-point run and sustain the lead for the win. Golden West was able to keep Pippen and Supple quiet in both the third and fourth sets thanks to fantastic defense that totaled 59 digs. Libero Jarrett Neal led the charge with 22 digs and Lalau Togagae was right in the mix with 13. What also stood out was the performance from the service line as the Rustlers recorded 10 total aces with 6 players earning at least 1.

Neither team was going to go down without a fight in the final set as it was anyone's game at the start. Palomar lead 8-6 at the change and took a small lead from there. Golden West would rally down 3 and tie the set at 14. In the end, fate was not on the Rustlers side as Palomar would eventually win the seesaw battle and the match.

Golden West continues conference play heading down to Grossmont on Friday and will come back home to face Irvine Valley on March 12.