Freshman Juliet Garcia totaled a match-high 13 kills to help lead off the 2018 Porterville College women's volleyball season with a win as the Pirates beat Diablo Valley College 3-1 in both teams' season opener at the Hartnell College Classic in Salinas. PC went on to split its matches on opening day after falling to the host Hartnell Panthers 3-0 that afternoon.

Porterville 3, Diablo Valley 1
The Pirates took their season opener, winning the contest over DVC by scores of 25-22, 25-19, 16-25, 25-21. Garcia was impressive in her collegiate debut as she led the offensive charge. Her 3 blocks also topped the Pirates.

Sophomore Madysen Clower chipped in with 8 kills while sophomore Emily Baeza also had a good all-around match with 7 kills, 7 digs, and 2 aces. Margaret Zanazzo paced the offense with 35 assists while Derica Ferris had a team-best 13 digs and 3 aces.

Hartnell 3, Porterville 0
Returning to the court just moments after their win, PC had a much tougher time matching up and lost in a sweep to host Hartnell by scores of  25-16, 25-12, 25-12.

PC totaled just 10 kills in the match and couldn't get an offensive rhythm going in the contest. Garcia led Porterville with 4 kills while Harris had a team-high 6 digs.

Up next: Porterville (1-1 overall) returns to action on Saturday (Sep. 1) when it will compete at the Mendocino College Invitational. The Pirates face Lassen College at noon followed by a 2 p.m. match against host Mendocino.