Pirates handle Lancers

COSTA MESA — If you talked to Coach Chuck Cutenese at the start of the season, he expected Orange Coast College to be a top-seeded women’s volleyball team in the playoffs.

The Pirates aren’t, but they get a shot at a No. 1 team.

The No. 8-seeded Pirates advanced out of the opening round of the Southern California Regional playoffs with a 25-27, 25-19, 25-12, 25-17 home victory against Pasadena City College Tuesday night.

Next for OCC (19-4) is top-seeded Los Angeles Pierce College (30-1) Saturday.

Cutenese hasn’t seen the Brahmas this season. The last time these two programs faced each other was 2006, when OCC made it back-to-back state championships with a three-game sweep of the Brahmas.

OCC was the favorite back then. The situation is a lot different now.

“The challenge that I put in front of them is that we had some early lapses,” Cutenese said. “Had we taken care of business we would’ve been a higher seed, but this is a chance to prove that we should’ve been a higher seed.”

Gauging from dropping the opening game Tuesday, OCC looked like a No. 8 seed.

The Pirates eventually settled down. Playing at home is a lot easier than on the road.

This is where OCC showed signs of a dominating team.

“Early in the year we haven’t been bouncing back from those [slow starts] and they’ve been affecting us,” Cutenese said. “It was nice to see that this late in the season we didn’t do what we had done earlier. [It is] a sign that we’ve learned something.”

The starts are nothing new for middle blocker Briana Fields.

Once she forgot how the Lancers (16-7) took Game 1 by keeping it close throughout, Fields gave OCC a cushion.

There wouldn’t be 16 ties like the first game.

Fields recorded the second game’s first two kills and added a third as the Pirates went ahead, 8-4. The Lancers called a timeout, and that’s where Fields and the rest of her teammates began to feel comfortable.

“Probably just nerves,” Fields said the reason for OCC being unable to close out Game 1 at game point. “I knew that we would come back in the second game.”

Fields’ match-high 20 kills helped OCC as well as a balanced attack featuring Rachel Freeno (10 kills, 12 digs), Jessica Bodkin (nine kills) and Karlee Skalla (seven kills).

When the Pirates needed Fields to perform after going down, 6-3, in Game 3, the freshman provided a spark.

She blocked a shot by opposite Ashley Marshman, PCC’s big hitter, who finished with 15 kills.

Moments later, after a PCC shot went wide, Fields recorded a service ace to even the game. Then aces began dropping faster than someone with a queen at a blackjack table.

The Pirates finished with a dozen aces in the match.

Emily Lyon delivered a handful in Game 3 during a 13-0 run, leaving OCC with game point at 24-11.

“When we take care of the basics of volleyball, passing, serving and defense, we’re a good team,” Cutenese said. “Tonight I think we showed that the majority of the time.”

OCC will have to show it again if it plans to hang with the No. 1 team.

DAVID CARRILLO PEÑALOZA may be reached at (714) 966-4612 or at david.carrillo@latimes.com.