The season has ended for the Bakersfield College women’s volleyball team. After finishing the regular season with a 20-8 record and carrying a 13-game win streak into the postseason, the Renegades fell in four sets to El Camino College. The match was tightly contested, as El Camino outscored Bakersfield College 96-86, ending the Renegades postseason journey just as it had begun.

For Bakersfield College, the loss leaves more to be desired, as coach Carl Ferreira said, “The coolest thing about this team was that we were still getting better. I don’t think we played our best match of the year. We had a lot to learn throughout the year, and we were just climbing and climbing. I thought we could win two matches and get to state. It was razor thin, but you have to tip your hat, shake their hand, and wish them well. I feel empty, I feel like I’m supposed to be writing my practice plan, I’m supposed to be doing the next scouting report, but that’s just the postseason.”

Despite the abrupt exit from the playoffs, Ferreira offered insight saying, “I gave up winning and losing defining me a long time ago. Sports give you the opportunity to look way past that. Yes, there’s an arena of competition that defines winning and losing. You’re going to enter, you’re going to have a combative moment, then you’re going to leave. I try to make sure we win and lose the same way, if you win, what did you learn? If you lose, what did you learn? If you can have some integrity about what you do throughout that, there’s a lot of value that players can take with them beyond just sports.”

While the women’s volleyball team may have come up short in their quest for the state championship, the bigger picture put in place by Ferreira remains. “What you want to do, is have people leave better than when they arrived. I’m a fan of instilling the correct morals and values so that you’re better after the fact than before you get there. Are they more prepared to be better volleyball players tomorrow than they are today? Are they more prepared to be better daughters, did they learn something about themselves that they can use in the classroom? If you can answer yes to those questions, then you’ve found success,” said Ferreira.