Huntington Beach, CA  ‑ Golden West women's volleyball team fell short in its bid to reach the top of the Orange Empire Conference standings, losing 3-0 to OEC-leading Cypress College.

The Rustlers (10-3, 6-2 OEC) pushed Cypress in each of the three sets, falling 16-25, 24-26, 20-25. The loss drops Golden West two games behind Cypress, which is undefeated in conference play.

The Rustlers were paced by sophomore Cassidy Paperny and freshman Jasmine Gonzalez. Paperny had a team-high 17 kills with four digs and a block. Gonzalez (Long Beach Millikan High) had 13 kills with six digs and a block. Sophomore Baileigh Graham had a team-high 14 digs, sophomore Kate Stanjevich had a team-high 26 assists and five digs and freshman Ashleigh Atsaros (Huntington Beach High) added three kills and a block. 

In the first set, Cypress built a 17-10 lead and used an 8-6 run to close out the set.

The Rustlers held a 16-13 lead, but Cypress tied the score at 22-22 before going on a 4-2 run to close out the second set. With the score tied 19-19 in the third set, Cypress closed out the match with a 6-1 run.

The Rustlers play at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 5 with a conference match against Saddleback College. Both teams are tied for second place in the conference standings.