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KNIGHT VOLLEYBALL ARCHIVE
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS - 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2006

2005

2005 Lady Knight Volleyball Team Photo
(L-R) Coach Custodio, Jeni Barentine, Amanda Ayala, Jessica Hero, Jaclyn Alexander,
Gloria Bacciarini, CJ Neathamer, Robyn Mehring, Aimee Ayers, Theresa Vrismo, Sara Cascarina,
Michelle Laurent and Coach Brazil.
SRJC Outlasts Knights
NEATHAMER WITH 14 KILLS
(Santa Rosa-11/30/05) The Shasta College volleyball team put up a big struggle but still lost in three games to Santa Rosa Junior College in the first round of the state playoffs on Wednesday in Santa Rosa. The Knights lost 30-26, 32-30, 30-25 to the Bear Cubs. C.J. Neathamer dished out 14 kills and 10 digs, and Michelle Laurent had 10 kills and nine digs to lead Shasta. Gloria Bacciarini added 31 assists and 14 digs and Theresa Vrismo seven kills in the Knights' (12-11) losing effort.
Lassen Falls in Three
LAURENT WITH 22 KILLS
(Shasta College-10/28/05) Shasta 3, Lassen 0: Michelle Laurent slammed down 22 kills for the Knights as they swept Lassen 30-18, 30-11, 30-16. Gloria Bacciarini dished out 42 assists and CJ Neathamer recorded 12 kills. Shasta (3-1 Golden Valley Conference, 10-9) plays 6 p.m. Wednesday at Butte.
Bearcubs Drop Knights
NON LEAGUE MATCH
(Santa Rosa-10/26/05) Santa Rosa 3, Shasta College 0 -- The host Bears routed the Knights 30-19, 30-24, 31-29. Gloria Bacciarini and Michelle Laurent led Shasta with 15 kills and 32 assists respectively.C.J. Neathamer knocked in 11 kills and Sara Cascarina recorded 32 digs. The Knights (9-9 Golden Valley Conference) host Lassen at 6 p.m. Friday.
Knights Fall in Four
ROUND ONE
(Shasta College-Jeffrey Jen Searchlight-10/12/05) Round one of the Shasta-Butte volleyball rivalry: to the Roadrunners.Thanks to its array of tall, powerful hitters, Butte College rolled to a 30-14, 28-30, 30-18, 30-17 victory on the Knights' home floor Wednesday. Butte had five hitters go in double-digits in kills, led by Amanda Sbragia's 19. Shasta's C.J. Neathamer had 16 kills, but the next-best total on her team was seven apiece from Michelle Laurent and setter Gloria Bacciarini. "Our passing was going back and forth," Bacciarini said. "Sometimes it was good, but it wasn't quite enough. They (Butte) are a good team and they blocked better than West Valley (College)."While the Knights rallied a bit beyond their defense, they still couldn't match one of the best Roadrunners to come along in years. Butte pounded the ball outside with Sbragia and Michelle Crippen (14 kills), up the middle with Mallorie Wilson (11 kills, eight blocks) and Emily Knox (10 kills), and even opposite with Natasha Marquis (13 kills). Kayla Comer, Butte's sophomore setter and Red Bluff High school graduate, had 53 assists. "They make my life so much easier," Comer said about her hitters. "And I don't have to play much defense since they block everything. For me, it is a matter of distribution and making sure there are enough touches to go around." Butte (12-2), ranked ninth in the California Community College Coaches poll, showed its hitting abilities from the get go, winning 12 of 14 points to grab a 15-6 lead en route to an easy first game. The second game went back and forth with Shasta (1-1 Golden Valley Conference, 7-8) grabbing a 25-21 lead on blocks from Jackie Alexander and Neathamer. The Knights then evened the match at one game apiece when a Butte block sailed a little out of bounds. The Roadrunners got back on track in the third game, taking the early lead and never looking back for a 2-1 advantage. The early portions of game four were close and Shasta trailed 16-15 before Butte reeled off seven straight points and didn't let up. "We just didn't play with the intensity we needed to," Knights coach Kelly Brazil said. "This definitely wasn't our best match. And, against a team like Butte, you have to play at your best to have a chance against them." Reporter Jeffrey Jen can be reached at 225-8228 or jjen@redding.com.
Knights Open GVC Play
with Win
ROLL LASSEN IN THREE
(Susanville-10/7/05) Shasta 3, Lassen 0: The Knights opened up Golden Valley Conference play on the road, defeating the Cougars 30-16, 30-24, 30-14. Michelle Laurent paced Shasta with 17 kills, and C.J. Neathamer slammed nine kills and two aces. The Knights (1-0 GVC, 7-7) travel to Butte College for a 6 p.m. Wednesday match.
Knights Bedevil DVC
BACCIARINI WITH 38 ASSISTA!
(Shasta College-10/5/05) The Shasta College volleyball squad swept Diablo Valley College on Wednesday. The Knights dominated the Vikings 30-24, 30-28, 32-30 in the victory. Michelle Laurent had a team high 19 kills, and C.J. Neathamer followed with 15. Gloria Bacciarini dished out 38 assists on the night. Shasta (6-7) plays at 6 p.m. Friday at Lassen to open GVC play.
Great Upset, Almost!
KNIGHTS LOSE IN 5
(Shasta Collelge-9/28/05-Redding Record Searchlight) Even against the best teams in Northern California, the Knights are right there. But right there isn't enough to pull out wins at the junior college level. The Shasta College volleyball team came close to knocking off undefeated West Valley, but the Vikings scored eight of the last 10 points in the fifth game to take a 30-18, 29-31, 30-18, 24-30, 15-12 victory in the Knights' gym on Wednesday. Shasta led 10-7 in the deciding game, but the Knights' youthfulness couldn't compete with West Valley's determination in the decisive points of the match. "That was the most frustrating part of the match," Knights setter Gloria Bacciarini said. "Being so close to winning and not being able to finish it." Freshman outside hitter C.J. Neathamer had 22 kills to lead Shasta (5-7), but Michelle Laurent and Theresa Vrismo had the next most with nine kills each. Bacciarini had 55 assists and Sara Cascarina finished with 19 digs followed by Laurent and Neathamer with 14 and 12 digs, respectively. However, the Knights once again struggled to start strong, then failed to finish. "We allow too many runs," Knights coach Kelly Brazil said. "We can't get a side out when we need one. It's frustrating because we are right there, but we haven't been able to get over the hump. This would have been a big win for us." Instead, it was a difficult loss. Though West Valley (7-0) lost starting right-side hitter Ashley Bjorklund to a left ankle injury in the first game, there was still plenty of offense for the Vikings. The key stat was the 16 blocks, including 12 solo blocks, the Vikings racked up. Denton and Briana McQuay each had four solo blocks. The combination of hitting and blocking helped West Valley control the tempo early. For the first game and a half, it looked like the Vikings would rout the Knights. After rolling through the first game, West Valley was up 22-13 in the second. "We take a while to wake up," Bacciarini said. "That's been us all season. Once we got going, it was interesting." Once Shasta shook off its afternoon slumber, the Knights roared back into the match with nine straight points to tie the game at 22 as Neathamer delivered four kills during that run. The Vikings surged ahead 25-22, but Shasta caught them at 28. The two teams traded points before Vrismo and Laurent tied things up with back-to-back kills. "We let up a bit," Vikings coach Jason Dupler said. "We know this team has too much firepower to do that against, and they came back on us. I came into this match telling our girls that this was going to be a five-setter and that was the case." West Valley responded by blowing open what had been a close 16-14 contest in the next game to grab a two games to one lead. Shasta bounced back to tie the fourth game at 19 before going on a late run send the match into the deciding fifth game. The Knights led throughout that game and a block by Jackie Alexander put Shasta up 11-9. But West Valley rattled off five straight points, ending with McQuay's block on Neathamer's attack to make it game point. Two points later, LeBaron's kill kept the Vikings undefeated. Reporter Jeffrey Jen can be reached at 225-8228 or jjen@redding.com
Yuba Swept in Three
CJ WITH A BIG MATCH
(Marysville-9/21/05) The Shasta College volleyball team swept Yuba 3-0, posting wins of 30-22, 30-23, 30-24 on Wednesday. C.J. Neathamer knocked down 18 kills and four blocks, and Michelle Laurent contributed 19 kills. Theresa Vrismo and Gloria Bacciarini had 13 kills and 54 assists, respectively. Shasta (3-5) plays Friday at the San Jose tournament.
Knights Take One From CSU-H
FOUR YEAR SCHOOL
(Arcata-9/14/05) The Knights lost a four-game match on the road to the host Lumberjacks, 30-22, 30-13, 25-30, 31-29. Gloria Bacciarini had 38 assists and three aces, Michelle Laurent had 16 kills, and C.J. Neathamer added 12 kills and 21 digs for the 2-4 Knights.
ARC Split
CJ NEATHAMER ALL-TOURNEY!
(Sacramento-9/10/05) American River Tournament -- The Knights lost their first match against Taft College 30-25, 25-30, 30-27, 28-30, 15-10 to set them up against host American River in the consolation game. Shasta downed American River 30-19, 30-25, 26-30, 30-20 to take third in the tournament. C.J. Neathamer was voted all-tournament with 33 kills, and Michelle Laurent had 35 kills on the day. Gloria Baccarini had five aces and 45 assists against American River. The Knights (2-3) will play Tuesday at Humboldt State.
Slow start, Fast Finish
STRONG DEFENSE & PASSING
(Shasta College-9/7/05-By Jeffrey Jen, Record Searchlight) In need of more offense, the Knights got a shot in the arm and ended with a confidence boost as a result. Playing at home for the first time this season, the Shasta College volleyball team won its first game beating Southwestern Oregon 17-30, 30-28, 30-27, 30-22 on Wednesday. Shasta had lost two straight games at a tournament in Sacramento over the weekend when its offense repeatedly sputtered. After suffering through the same thing in the first game against the Lakers, the Knights finally found their stride. Combined with strong defense and passing, it was enough for Shasta to roll through the next three games. Not surprisingly, outside hitters Michelle Laurent and C.J. Neathamer fueled the Knights attack. The freshman Neathamer finished with 21 kills and Laurent, a sophomore, added 20. "They were both on today and that really helped," Knights coach Kelly Brazil said. "Offensively, we started to get the job done." Sophomore right-side hitter Theresa Vrismo added 12 kills and freshman setter Gloria Bacciarini ended up with 54 assists. "Theresa has definitely stepped up for us," Brazil said. "She has always been a hard worker and she put in time over the summer to get better." Shasta needed its new found offensive punch because Southwestern Oregon had a slew of hitters of their own. Their outside hitters, Kari Adkins and Jessie Macknicki, finished with 19 and 16 kills, respectively, and the Lakers had the added bonus of some height in the middle with 6-foot-1 Amy Hunt and 5-11 Ashley Lampman. The Knights tallest player meanwhile is 5-10 freshman Sara Cascarina who is the team's libero -- a defensive specialist -- due to her strong passing and defense. However, the height disadvantage became less of a factor once Laurent, in her coach's words, "got her groove back." After a tough first game, Laurent had eight kills in the second game. She was at her best when the Knights needed her the most, getting two straight kills to tie the match at 28. "That first game was pretty scary," Laurent said. "Winning the second game was big. We knew that we could beat this team, but winning that game solidified that thinking. Our confidence shot straight up after that." With that boost, Shasta shot out to a 19-10 lead in the third game. The Lakers did go a 9-1 run to close what been a nine-point gap to 28-27. But Vrismo put down a kill and 5-foot-5 Bacciarini came up with a block to put Shasta up 2-1. Southwestern Oregon grabbed an early 8-5 lead, but the Knights managed to answer the Lakers. Neathamer's kill made it 15-11 Shasta, and the Lakers never got closer than two points. With a better offense, things should be looking for the Knights. Shasta has always had a strong defense and passing, as evidence with five players reaching double figures in digs. Laurent finished with 17, and Neathamer and Cascarina each added 13. Bacciarini had 12 and Vrismo 10. "It felt so good for us to come out of our little slump and start swinging," Neathamer said. "We needed to get the first-game jitters out of the way. We have a young team and lot of players playing where they haven't before, but once we settled down, we were fine." Reporter Jeffrey Jen can be reached at 225-8228 or jjen@redding.com.
Winless in Sacramento
TWO CLOSE LOSSES
(Sacramento-9/3/05) The Shasta College volleyball team went 0-2 at the Sacramento City Tournament, losing to De Anza College and Sacramento City College. Gloria Baccarini had 29 assists in the 30-21, 30-27, 32-20 loss to De Anza. In the second match, C.J. Neathamer nailed 12 kills and Theresa Vrismo seven to keep pace, but the Knights lost 30-27, 31-29, 30-23 to Sac City.
Sylvester Rides to Arkansas
SAME CONFERENCE AS BUBBLES LEE
(Shasta College - 7/1/05) Recent volleyball news is that Jessica Sylvester, starting setter from the 2004 Shasta College volleyball team, recently accepted a full scholarship to Lyon University in Arkansas.  She will be in the same conference as Bubbles Lee, who is attending Lambuth University in Tennessee on a full volleyball/softball scholarship.

(Printable copy of the volleyball schedule)