Coast topples Olympians to capture third straight state title

Orange Coast College has grown quite attached to the land on top of the men's volleyball state mountain and the Pirates don't want to give up the penthouse suite anytime soon.

For the third time in a row and the 10th time in program history, the Pirates are winners – and STILL champions after sweeping past San Diego Mesa College, 25-22, 25-13, 25-23, at the 2024 3C2A Men's Volleyball State Championships on Saturday night inside Orange Coast College's Peterson Gym.

"Passing and serving really was the difference in this match tonight for us," OCC head coach Travis Turner said. "They're a big group over there. Mesa is a really good team, but we've been here all year long. It's been such a good year for us. I can't believe we did it."

With a ton of weapons to choose from, the Pirates (20-0) found their main successes in the middle of the floor, where Andrew Robbins (10 kills on 12 attempts with four blocks) and Tourney MVP Jacob Surrette (8 kills, one error, two aces) proved to be major contributors in the biggest match of the season.

Freshman Kam Vakilian added 11 kills, while Cole Hauser added nine for Coast. Setter Landon Seymour dished out 25 assists, while Myles Henderson notched five digs to go along with four kills.

For the Olympians (21-5), they wrapped up a historical season by reaching the state title match for the first time in program history. All-Tournament selections Trevor Clark (12 kills, three digs, five block assists) and TJ Letuligasenoa (7 kills) pushed the Pirates harder than just about any other program did in 2024. Logan Shepard and Colton Pillsbury had a combined 30 assists.

"It was a special season with some great freshmen and great returning players," Mesa head coach David Proffitt said. "What a great opponent OCC was tonight. I knew it would be a tough contest against a very experienced team … well coached … on their home floor. We had a lot of obstacles to overcome, but I'm proud of my guys for how they showed up and played. Would I have liked a different outcome? Of course, but I can't be prouder of my guys."

Both teams went to work early in the opening set and both squads were looking to set the pace with their power on offense. Coast inched in front by three points and with the poise and discipline of a two-time state champion, they simply refused to make any crucial mistakes which would allow the Olympians to get even or pass the Pirates.

Seymour – named to the All-Tournament Team along with Hauser – found a bit of luck when a errant serve banked off a diving Mesa player out of bounds, giving Coast the point and a 19-16 advantage, forcing SDM into a timeout.

Mesa would try to get closer, and OCC would simply respond with points of their own and it stayed that way until a Hauser kill finished the Olympians off, 25-22.

The second set was a blueprint of the first, with OCC jumping ahead early on, while the Olympians struggled to catch up. Midway through the second set, the Pirates ramped up their game to an all-time level and pulled away. Coast led 18-12 before closing things off with a 7-1 run, thanks to back-to-back aces from Surrette and back-to-back kills from Henderson, using flawless passing off of Mesa serves to dictate their offense down the stretch.

"We definitely peaked when we needed to," Seymour said about the second set. "I don't know what to say except that second set was really the icing on the cake. That second set really got us that match."

Mesa tried to pull out all the stops in the third set and led at the halfway point, 15-12 and again at 18-15 before Coast answered back. Coast forced Mesa into a timeout after a 4-1 mini-run evened the set at 19.

Strong serves from Vakilian, including an ace, propelled OCC into a 23-21 lead and from there, both teams traded points before a Surrette kill ended the match and sent the OCC fans and players into a frenzy.

The win was also the 100th state/national championship for the Orange Coast College athletics program and it's something that Turner doesn't take for granted.  In addition to winning his four state titles as a head coach for the Pirates, Turner also played on two state titles (1989, 1991) as a player. "You think it means something to me?" an emotional Turner said when asked about being the 100th state title team. "It means a lot … I love this place. I love this school … I love everything about this school. This place meant the world to me growing up and now as the coach, I hope I can give that same experience back to these kids as well."

Release by Tony Altobelli, Orange Coast