Irvine Valley's women's beach volleyball team picked up an important Orange Empire Conference victory on Thursday before facing one of the top NCAA small school teams in the country.
The Lasers defeated Golden West, 5-0, before falling to NCAA Division II Colorado Mesa, 5-0.
The Mavericks made history last season by claiming the Division II National Championship at the AVCA Small College Championships.
In the match with Colorado Mesa, Irvine Valley lost all five contests in straight sets. But the No. 2 pair of sophomores Gabi Brown and Chloe Swanson and the No. 3 duo of sophomore Angie Griego and freshman Tessa Marocco each battled late in the second set. Griego and Marocco lost, 25-23, in the second set.
The Lasers cruised in their first match of the day, winning in straight sets in four of the five courts.
Brown and Swanson won, 21-8, 21-9, Griego and Marocco came out on top, 21-10, 21-5, the No. 4 pair of freshmen Emily Hon and Mia Bertolone won, 22-20, 21-6, and the sophomore duo of Kendall Fraser and Alessandra Nitogilia earned a 21-10, 21-8, victory on the fifth court.
IVC's No. 1 team of sophomore Barett Nolan and freshman Sydney Dews had to battle. The pair lost the first set, but came back for a 12-21, 21-14, 15-5 win to wrap up the sweep.
Irvine Valley's record went to 4-8 overall and 2-1 in conference play.
The Lasers play again next Tuesday, hosting Hope International at 11 a.m. and Concordia at 1 p.m.
