Men's Volleyball survives the Semi's. The two-game cushion was slipping away and, with it, the opportunity to play for a state championship. So sophomore setter Adam Quinn turned to his bench, shouting and clapping and stomping. And surging. "I was telling them to get energized," said Quinn. "When we play with energy, we're unstoppable." Spurred by a sophomore class that believed nothing less, the Moorpark College men's volleyball team dug deep and found the energy to survive a five-game thriller in Thursday night's state semifinals at Orange Coast College. Right-side Josh Howley had a game-high 24 kills, middle blocker Kyle Auge had 18 kills and eight blocks and Quinn had a game-high 74 assists as the Raiders edged Irvine Valley, snatching the decisive fifth game, 15-13, after splitting the first four 30-22, 30-24, 28-30, 33. "Our kids are just fighting to the end," said Moorpark coach Steve Burkhart. "It's just so incredible. "The sophomores on this team have been telling me all year, 'We're going to get you to the final, coach.' " And that's where the Raiders (16-4) will be Saturday night at 7, playing for their second state title against host Orange Coast College (18-2), which eliminated defending state champion Long Beach City. "It still hasn't sunk in," said Howley. Orange Coast halted Moorpark's season a year ago in the postseason opener. Trevor Willenberg had 15 kills, Tyler Peterson had 10 kills and Eric Varney had 14 digs for the Raiders. Moorpark won the 2005 state title as the hosts. When the two teams opened the season at Raider Pavilion on Feb. 2, Irvine Valley (16-3) emerged with a five-game victory. Yet Quinn told this group before the semifinal that, should they play well, they would win in three games. "I was getting them confident," said Quinn. It worked early, when Moorpark's defense held the Lasers to an ugly .139 hitting percentage. "Doing that to this team is just incredible," said Burkhart. "That No. 2 (Alex Reis)? We needed a miracle to block the guy." But the Raiders perhaps reached overconfidence when Irvine Valley raced back to take the third and fourth games to even the match. "We played very well the first two games," said Quinn. "I think we started off the third game thinking we had them." "We got too relaxed," said Howley. Irvine Valley lead 25-16 in the fourth game when the Raiders regained their defensive edge. Five blocks by Auge and Peterson during a 14-5 run gave Moorpark its first two match points. Although Irvine Valley survived behind big kills by Caleb Brophy (17 kills) and Sam Cornell (11 kills), the foundation had been laid for the decisive fifth game. "That gave us momentum," said Howley. "It felt like that really helped us in the next game." "Volleyball is all about momentum. What it came down to is never giving up." The decisive game was tied 11-11 when Howley, undersized at 6-foot-1 from Westlake High, followed Ian Cafferty's kill with two of his own. "He's the best all-around player in the state," said Quinn of Howley.

Men's Volleyball going to State. Practice makes perfect. One day before Moorpark College's state quarterfinal showdown with Palomar at Raider Pavilion, coach Steve Burkhart had his men's volleyball team practice a drill in which one team held a 26-23 lead and if the team ahead lost the lead and the game, that team had to run laps. "We call it 'make 'em run,' " Burkhart said. Just 24 hours later, Moorpark found itself in almost exactly the exact same situation, trailing Palomar 26-23 in the opening game. Evidently, the drill paid off. Moorpark rallied, forced sudden death and pulled out a win that probably changed the course of the match, as Moorpark advanced to the state semifinals with a three-game victory over the Comets 33-31, 30-17, 30-25. "It's a great lift off these guys' shoulders to win this match," Burkhart said. "To get by this first match was really important for this group." After coming up one match short of the state tournament in a five-game loss to Orange Coast at home last season, Moorpark made sure the drama was restricted to only Game 1. The Raiders, behind 20 kills from sophomore outside hitter Josh Howley, 14 kills and four blocks from sophomore middle blocker Kyle Auge and 12 kills and three blocks from freshman outside hitter Tyler Peterson, sets up a Thursday match with Irvine Valley in the state semifinals at Orange Coast. Palomar got 12 kills from sophomore outside hitter Marc Berry and 10 kills from sophomore middle blocker Roger Engle. " (Moorpark) played a great match and we were a little bit off," said Palomar coach Bjorn Dahl. "We've been a pretty consistent team all year, but (Moorpark) did some good things and played outstanding volleyball." Palomar had outplayed Moorpark for a good portion of the first game and actually added to its 26-23 lead when Jordon Tarantino went off a pair of Raider blockers for a kill. But Moorpark made its move, winning the next three points to force a Comets timeout. Palomar got the serve back due to a Moorpark attack error and eventually got it to game point. But just when it looked like Palomar was home free, Moorpark staged one more rally. "When you're in that situation, you just gotta focus and play your game," Auge said. You just have to keep it simple and focus." Howley kept Moorpark alive with a kill, then Steve McColllum's potential game-ending hit went wide to force the first game into sudden death and Moorpark got the lead when Palomar was called for lifting. Palomar won two of the next three points to stay alive, but a Peterson kill wrestled the lead back to Moorpark and Auge ended the set with a swing to Palomar's center court, giving the Raiders and improbable first game win. "It was a huge lift," Auge said of the Game 1 win. "It gave us so much momentum coming into the second game. It pretty much set the tone for the match." That it did. After conceding the first two points of game two, Moorpark caught fire, winning the next four points to force a Palomar timeout, then won five of the next six sets to force the Comet's last timeout, and even them the Raiders refused to let up, again winning five of six points to extend to a double-digit lead at 14-4. Palomar got as close as seven, but the Raider lead was eventually too much to overcome. "After that first game, I thought we got ourselves in control," Burkhart said. "We just didn't pass very well in the first game and they (Palomar) did a good job passing." Just like the first set, the two teams battled neck and toe in game three, though Moorpark was the one in front most of the time. Trailing early 10-9, Moorpark made another big run, winning the next four points, to open up a small cushion that they needed for most of the set. Palomar got as close as two points, the last time at 25-23, but Auge swung a ball crosscourt that just stayed inbounds to give the ball back to Moorpark, and consecutive points after that gave Moorpark a 28-23 lead, essentially booking the Raiders' ticket to the State semi's.

Men's Volleyball defeats Pierce. The Raiders defeated LA Pierce College in 5 games. Game scores were 30-25, 25-30, 24-30, 30-21, and 15-12. Kyle Auge had 18 kills and 3 blocks. Josh Howley had 16 kills. Adam Quinn had 60 assists while Libero Eric Varney had 18 digs.

Men's Volleyball gets by Santa Monica. The Raiders defeated host Santa Monica City College, 3-1. Game scores were 30-25, 30-20, 25-30, and 30-20.

Men's Volleyball defeated by LBCC. The Raiders were defeated by Long Beach City College, 3-0.Game scores were 22-30, 28-30, and 22-30. Kyle Auge had 12 kills and 3 blocks. Josh Howley had 10 kills. Adam Quinn had 30 assists while Libero Eric Varney had 10 digs.

Men's Volleyball defeated by OCC. The Raiders were defeated by host Orange Coast College, 2-3.Game scores were 24-30, 22-30, 30-21, 30-15, and 18-16. Kyle Auge had 18 kills and 3 blocks. Josh Howley had 16 kills. Adam Quinn had 60 assists while Libero Eric Varney had 18 digs.

A call to all Men's Volleyball Alumni. This year's game is Friday, February 26th at 6:00 pm. Any Alumni interested in playing should be at the gym by 5:30 pm.

Men's Volleyball takes out Goldenwest. The Raiders defeated host Goldenwest College, 3-0. Kyle Auge paced the Raiders with 15 kills. Josh Howley added 12 kills and Adam Quinn added 49 assists.

Men's Volleyball takes two part 2. The Raiders traveled to Palomar and defeated the host in 3 games. In the second game the Raiders defeated San Diego City College in 3 games.

Men's Volleyball takes two. As part of state mandated cost cutting, the Raiders traveled to Santa Monica City College and played San Diego Mesa College and Grossmont College. The Raiders came away with 2 sweeping victories.

Men's Volleyball opens the season. The Raiders were defeated by Irvine Valley College in their season opener. Irvine opened with a 2 game lead, but the Raiders pushed it to 5 games. Game scores were 24-30, 22-30, 30-21, 30-15, and 18-16. Kyle Auge had 18 kills and 3 blocks. Josh Howley had 16 kills. Adam Quinn had 60 assists while Libero Eric Varney had 18 digs.