3:20pm | The Long Beach City College (LBCC) women’s volleyball team closed out the 2011 season with a heart-breaking 3-2 loss to visiting Los Angeles Harbor College (LAHC) on Thursday night. Harbor pulled out the South Coast Conference win by scores of 14-25, 25-23, 29-27, 23-25, and 15-9. With the loss, the Vikings end the season with an 8-13 overall record and 5-8 mark in conference play.

Long Beach rolled to the easy Set 1 win and appeared to be cruising to the win in Set 2. LBCC was up 20-15 and 23-20 put couldn’t hold on. Three Long Beach errors and a pair of kills by Harbor’s Amanda Miller gave the Seahawks Set 2 as well as momentum on the Vikings’ home court.

Set 3 was more of the same as Long Beach was up 23-20 and had set point at 24-23 after a kill by sophomore outside hitter Danielle Tuitasi. But Long Beach again couldn’t put the Seahawks away. LBCC had set point at 27-26, but three consecutive LBCC hitting errors handed Harbor the win. Long Beach forced a fifth set after hanging on for a 25-23 win. LBCC was up 21-14 but this time withheld a Seahawks rally that saw Harbor tie the score at 23.

Kills by Tuitasi and freshman Doreen Iosua closed out Set 4. But in Set 5, Harbor stormed out to a 5-1 lead and never looked back. Freshman Gerrica Trias got LBCC within two points (8-6) with her kill, but the Vikings would get no closer.