11/20/14 • By The Telegram Staff

PHOENIX, Ariz. -- Without a doubt, the Raiders were determined to reach the national semifinals.

Unfortunately for the Raiders, it wasn't in the cards. The second-seeded Central Community College volleyball team lost in five sets to 10th-seeded Glendale Thursday in the quarterfinals of the National Junior College Athletic Association, Division II national tournament in Phoenix, Arizona.

"We've had our sites set on the final four," Central head coach Mary Young said. "We were going to go for it. I'd go with that plan all over again. I felt this team could do it."

In order to reach the national quarterfinals, the Raiders first knocked off 15th-seeded Genesee Community College 25-16, 25-14, 25-13 Thursday.

"We played clean and efficient all the way around against Genesee," Young said. "It was a good start for us."

It was just the start the Raiders were looking for to start the tournament.

Initially, that momentum carried over into the quarterfinals for Central, as the Raiders cruised to a first-set win over Glendale 25-14.

"The first set, we played with high energy and high emotion," Young said. "That was great, but we didn't sustain that throughout."

As Glendale began to improve defensively and clean up its passing game, it started to find success.

In turn, that success helped Glendale find confidence.

"They were able to ride the confidence very well," Young said. "I felt that happened to us in Set 2. We were playing without as much emotion and with emotion in the wrong way. We were playing not to lose."

Though Central lost focus in a 25-22 second-set loss, the Raiders got back on track with a 25-19 win in the third set to take control again.

Central had plenty of opportunities in the fourth set to close out the match, but a timid approach let Glendale slip away with the 25-22 win to force a deciding fifth set.

"We got away from what was making us successful in Set 1 and Set 3 and I don't know why," Young said.

The Raiders, again, were in control in the fifth set, taking a 9-6 lead.

But Glendale found another confidence boost and turned around to win the match with a 15-13 third-set win.

"We were in position to win every set," Young said. "Unfortunately in some pretty clutch points, we lost focus and didn't execute. A little bit of it was the opponent -- they're a tough opponent. Some of it was our own doing. We did just enough for them to be three points better, but that's all it takes."

Though it's not the match the Raiders were hoping for, Central plays today in the consolation bracket of the tournament.

"That's tough," Young said. "They're heart broken. We all are. I told them, 'Life is this way. You get knocked down sometimes and things don't always go as planned, but we will get back up tomorrow and that's what makes us Central Community College. We're going to put the jersey on tomorrow with pride.'"

Today's game will be far from a cakewalk, however, as the Raiders play third-seeded Illinois Central, which was beaten by sixth-seeded Cowley Community College Thursday in four sets.

"(Illinois Central) plays very quick," Young said. "They play a fast match and they're well-coached."

Thursday at Phoenix, Arizona

Match 1

Central (35-7) 25 25 25

Genesee 16 14 13

* KILLS: Central - Skyler Erickson 10, Megan Anderson 8, Payton Chohon 7, Morgan Nikkila 5, Makaleigh Yantzie 4, Keely Woods 3, Makayla Augustine 1, Hillary Thege 1, Cassidy Yong 1

* BLOCKS: Central - Anderson 4, Nikkila 2, Erickson 2, Yong 1, Chohon 1, Augustine 1

* ACE SERVES: Central - Yong 2, Brooke Robertson 1

* ASSISTS: Central - Yong 33, Yantzie 1

* DIGS: Central - Erickson 11, Molly Gotschall 10, Shayla Trotter 5, Chohon 5, Yantzie 2, Robertson 2, Thege 1, Anderson 1

Match 2

Central 25 22 25 22 13

Glendale 14 25 19 25 15

* KILLS: Central - Megan Anderson 21, Payton Chohon 15, Skyler Erickson 11, Makaleigh Yantzie 8, Morgan Nikkila 5, Cassidy Yong 3, Shayla Trotter 1

* BLOCKS: Central - Anderson 6, Chohon 5, Yantzie 3, Yong 2, Erickson 1, Nikkila 1

* ACE SERVES: Central - Trotter 1

* ASSISTS: Central - Yong 54, Erickson 1, Nikkila 1

* DIGS: Central - Yong 25, Erickson 18, Brooke Robertson 13, Chohon 7, Nikkila 6, Yantzie 4, Anderson 3