Following three straight wins against conference opponents, the Mt. Hood Community College volleyball team is looking to finish the season strong.

The team is coming off wins against rivals Chemeketa, Linn-Benton and Southwest Oregon community colleges and is looking to carry the leverage with them the rest of the way through the season.

They beat Linn-Benton, Oct. 21 in four games 30-21, 30-27, 26-30 and 30-21.
The next day they swept SW Oregon 31-29, 30-24 and 30-20.

“We’re playing really good right now, and it’s showing,” Coach Lena Chan said of her team’s performance. She’s not the only one who thinks so, either. “One coach in our league told me that he thinks our team hasn’t even hit second gear yet, and that’s exiting to hear other coaches say that about our team,” said Chan.

Watching videotape of previous matches and going over the inconsistencies of the team has been an important aspect to the team. “Our girls watch tape to fix their habits and tendencies. We have really been able to capitalize on plays that we weren’t making earlier in the season, and we’re not making repeated mistakes.”

Chan also said that sophomores Brittany Jackson and Jocelyn Edlin have progressed through the season and have really helped the team come together as a whole. “Brittany and Jocelyn have really stepped up and taken their game to another level lately and continue to show leadership.”

The team will be hosting the Halloween Classic at Mt.Hood Community College on Oct. 29-30. It will be a 12-team invitational that will be formatted in pool play. Pool play is when the teams are split into groups and the group with the best records will play each other in the following rounds. Whatcom, Shoreline, Lower Columbia, Columbia Basin, Edmonds, Clark, Blue Mountain, Clackamas, Chemeketa, Spokane, and tournament host MHCC will be the participants.

There also will be an alumni team representing Mt. Hood, made up of players from the past few years at the college. Mostly it is a recreational, fun tournament but since so many teams are league rivals, the competition can look like a league game. All of the teams will dress up in costumes for at least the first two rounds. After that, some teams decide to wear their normal attire to get comfortable. The tournament also gives out a prize to the best-dressed team.

The three straight conference wins against SW Oregon, Linn-Benton, and Chemeketa move the team to 7-4 in the league standings, pushing them back into first place in the Southern Region.