American River College’s women’s volleyball team prevailed against Diablo Valley College 3-1 on Nov. 8.

In the somewhat crowded gym, family, friends and fans gathered for the last home match of the season, as the Beavers outshined their opponent with a riveting performance.

ARC came out strong in the first set, starting with 15 unanswered points. They powered through to win the set 25-6.

The second set was a different story with DVC taking the lead early. ARC would come back to tie the game at 10-10. Both teams fought for possession. In the end, the Vikings managed to secure the set 25-21.

ARC then dominated the next two sets, winning the third 25-10 and the fourth 25-9.

There were notable performances by ARC from Morgan Castaneda, and Ella Harm and Allaina Houk.

Head coach Carson Lowden said overall, the team’s performance made her happy.

“The second set was definitely a weird moment,” Lowden said. “But the gals responded well in the third set and were able to start strong right away. I thought we played really clean in the other sets.”

Lowden said she is feeling positive about the rest of the season and that the team is constantly improving.

“I think we’ve been playing a lot of intelligent volleyball,” Lowden said. “Our attackers have been doing a good job being able to score points and [keeping errors] low. I’m excited, I think we are doing some pretty fun things.”

Houk said that the fact that it was sophomore night added a sentimental aspect to the match.

“A lot of emotions, but [I] was definitely nervous and a little sad,” Houk said. “I tried to translate that in a positive way to get it going on the court.”

Houk said that her experience with ARC’s program proved beneficial to her college career.

“Carson has definitely opened my eyes in the volleyball community, showing [me] that there are good teammates and good coaches that are not toxic,” Houk said. “She shows us that your team is your family and that it doesn’t have to be forced.”