This Week in LBCC Athletics: Roadrunners Volleyball Clinches First Seed; New Sport on the Horizon?
Linn-Benton women’s volleyball continued their winning streak last week, winning both their games to advance to 29-0 on the season and secure a playoff berth.
On October 28, the Beaks took on the 15-6 Rogue Ospreys, the second place team in the NWAC South behind LBCC, at the Activities Center in Albany.
Before the game, fans were urged to dress up in Halloween costumes in celebration of spooky season, but scarier yet was the Beaks’ injury report, which listed sophomore Stella Barber and freshman Brooklyn Willard, one of the team’s top scorers this year, as out for a second straight match.
Despite the losses on their roster, the Roadrunners still managed to win in dominant fashion, taking the match 3-0.
In the first set, the Ospreys and Beaks traded points early before Rogue managed to jump out to a 9-5 lead. But Linn-Benton fought back to tie the score at 12-12 before taking the lead and never looking back. Up by six, a kill by Grace Luttrell officially put the set away, with Linn-Benton winning 25-18.
The Roadrunners got off to a much stronger start in the second set, taking an early 5-0 lead. Down 24-9 late, the Ospreys were able to go on a three-point run before Luttrell once again closed out the set with a kill. The Roadrunners won 25-12.
Beaks started even better in the third set, going on a 7-0 run after the break. LBCC held a comfortable lead for the remaining minutes, emerging with a 25-11 victory after a kill by Brooke Rogers sealed the victory.
Sophomore Grace Boeder led the team with 12 points and eight kills in the match while freshman Maddy Hellem came in second with 9.5 points and seven kills. Freshman Kinsey Brelage led the Beaks defensively with 15 digs.
The win secured the first seed in the NWAC South for LBCC with the playoffs right around the corner.
Just a day prior, the Roadrunners had defeated 13-11 Southwestern Oregon Community College 3-0 at home on sophomore night, winning all three sets decisively with scores of 25-15, 25-14, and 25-17. Freshman Desiree Tupua led the team with 10.5 points and four kills while Hellem and Boeder tied for the team lead in kills with eight each. Brelage had a team-high 17 digs.
With the volleyball season winding to a close, it’s time for LBCC sports fans to start looking ahead. Roadrunners volleyball has just two regular season games left: November 1 at Clark and November 3 at Lane, both at 6 p.m., before the postseason begins. With the top seed in the NWAC South locked up, the Beaks will have home court advantage through the regional section of the playoffs.
Basketball Tips Off
After that, both the men’s and women’s basketball programs for LBCC will hold their 2023 season debuts on November 17. The women’s team will take on Pierce at 5:30 p.m. while the men’s team will take the court two hours later to face Linfield’s JV squad. Ticket sales for the season are open via this link.
The LBCC women’s team started a fundraiser for the upcoming season with a goal of $10,000. You can view the fundraiser page here.
New Sport at LBCC?
Looking even further into the future, The Commuter talked with Linn-Benton’s Director of Athletics Mark Majeski about the possibility of the school adding additional sports to its roster in the future. He confirmed that discussions have occurred regarding the possibility, but not much beyond that, adding, “There really isn’t a definitive plan or timeline… The details about funding and timeline have not been discussed in detail.”
Majeski did mention that options discussed for the new additions include men’s soccer, women’s softball, and eSports, as well as additional recreational and competitive club sports. The addition of a new sport at LBCC would include both a men’s and women’s sport, although not necessarily the same sport – nor would they have to start at the same time. The addition of a new athletic program is a strategy the school is considering to increase enrollment.
It’s an exciting time to be a Roadrunners fan, with the volleyball playoffs and basketball season all starting in November, and possibly some even bigger things on the horizon.
