Huntington Beach, CA  ‑ The Golden West men's volleyball team showed grit in its 2018 season-opening loss to visiting Santa Barbara City College on Saturday.

The Rustlers (0-1) finished the 2017 season ranked ninth in the California Community College Men's Volleyball Coaches Association State Poll, but this season's squad is missing several keys pieces from last season.

Golden West is finding its identity under new coach Ryan Windisch. The Rustlers hustled and overcame several large deficits in a 23-25, 25-22, 19-25, 14-25 defeat.

In the first set, down 24-20, Golden West staged a late rally that fell short. The Rustlers rallied from deficits of 12-5 and 21-20 to take the set. In the fourth set, Golden West staged comebacks from a 20-8 deficit that fell short.

Sophomore Joshua Kim led Golden West with 14 kills, with six digs and a block. Freshman Jason Carroll (Mater Dei) had a team-high 26 assists with nine digs, freshman Enzo Boggio (Schurr High) had nine kills with 11 digs and sophomore Constantin Tolentino added a team-high 12 digs.

The Rustlers host Long Beach City College at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 31.

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