In rather convincing fashion, Bakersfield College defeated West L.A. College 25-8, 25-8, 25-12 in a Western State Conference match on Oct. 24 in L.A. Caitlin Bernardin led BC with 12 kills and 11 digs, and Edithza Urias added 7 kills.

Samantha Whittington chipped in with 38 assists and 7 digs to help the Renegades.

Unfortunately for BC (16-5, 6-3 WSC), they ran into defending state champion L.A. Pierce two days later at Pierce, and lost for the fourth time in four meetings against the Brahmas (23-0, 8-0 WSC) on Oct. 26.

Bernardin had 12 kills and 9 digs to lead the Renegades.

The good news for BC is that it was their last meeting of the year, unless of course they meet in the playoffs.

Before the match, Pierce head coach Nabil Mardini had this to say about the competition against BC.

“Bakersfield is coached by my good friend, Carl Ferreira, and are always one of the most prepared and well-coached teams in the state,” he said. “It is always an exciting match playing the Renegades.”

On Oct. 19, the Renegades defeated Santa Monica City College 25-20, 25-18, 25-22 at SBCC. Urias led BC with 18 kills, and Bernardin followed with 13 kills to go along with 19 digs.

Monica Barksdale led the team in digs with 20, and Wittington finished with 42 assists on the night.

BC defeated Glendale College in straight sets 25-12, 25-14, 25-15 on Oct. 17 at BC.

Leading the BC attack was Urias, who had 16 kills, and Bernardin had 11 kills and 10 digs. Barksdale led with 12 digs, and Wittington had 42 assists.

In talking about the matches against Glendale and SBCC, Ferreira had this to say, “When you get into October, you’ve got to really be thorough in how you assess and evaluate performance.”

“Winning and losing is a very simple way that American society judges progress, but you’ve got to really look between the lines to look at the little details to continue to make progress.”

“Our team has already established this is who we are, this is how we play, so at this point, you’re really just trying to master the game and the details.

“We have three weeks, six matches left until the post season, and if you ask me, we’re just trying to see if we can make the few little adjustments to try and be the most successful we can be.”

Two standouts all season long for the Renegades are Whittington and Bernardin. For the season, Whittington leads the state with 11.56 assists per game, and Bernardin is currently second in the state with a 4.90 kills per game ratio.

BC is scheduled to host College of the Canyons on Nov. 2.