In a meeting of the past two state champions, the Moorpark College men's volleyball team was eliminated in four games Tuesday night by host Irvine Valley in the CCCAA state quarterfinals.

"We took it on the chin out there," said Moorpark coach Steve Burkhart. "I thought we played well. Irvine just played a little better. That's all."

Sophomore outside hitter Tyler Peterson had 16 kills, freshman middle blocker Dustin Neary had 10 kills, setter Evan Litchfield had 34 assists and libero Dylan Shigekawa added 23 digs as Moorpark dropped its first postseason game since winning the 2010 state title.

Defending champ Irvine Valley (12-7) advances to face top-ranked Long Beach City in the state Final Four Thursday.

Moorpark (11-7) brought a three-match winning streak into the postseason, clinching the Western State Conference's third and final berth by sweeping its final three opponents, including No. 1 Long Beach.

But that streak ended when the Raiders dropped a sloppy first game, 25-18.

"They got out to a good start," said Burkhart. "We just didn't pass well. We just didn't do a lot of things real well (in the opening game)."

Moorpark dropping a tight second game 25-22, but responded by snatching the third game 25-18 and leading the fourth game, 14-13, before succumbing 25-19.

"We were in it to the end and just made a couple big errors," said Burkhart. "They just played a little bit better than we did."

The Moorpark College men's volleyball team will travel to Orange County Tuesday for the state quarterfinals.

Moorpark (11-6) will face Irvine Valley (11-7) at 6 p.m. in a matchup of the last two state champions. It is also a rematch of last year's state quarterfinal at Raider Pavilion, which Irvine Valley won on its way to the title.

Moorpark finished the regular season with three straight three-game sweeps, including a second win over No. 1 Long Beach City, to clinch a postseason berth. Moorpark also swept Irvine Valley in February.

Riding high on a 15-match winning streak, the No. 7-seeded Moorpark College women's volleyball team (20-3) will open the Southern California regional playoffs against No. 10 Irvine Valley (14-5) tonight at 6 p.m.

Moorpark has won 43 consecutive games during its streak. The last team to take a game off the Raiders? Irvine Valley during a four-game Raiders victory Sept. 23

"I don't know what significance, if any, that has," said Moorpark coach Steve Burkhart. "Other than we know we can play with them.

Sophomore middle blocker Karissa Flack, the Newbury Park High product who is being recruited by Alabama, is No. 2 in the state in both kills (364) and hitting (.463).

But middle blocker Gabrielle Luciani (Buena High) and outside hitters Brooke Mataele and Alyssa Del Sesto (Oak Park High) are just three of the Raiders who have played well during the streak.

"If they can load up on Karissa and we can go someplace else and get the ball down, that's going to make us much tougher to defend," said Burkhart.

Tickets for today's playoff matches are $8 for adults and $5 for children.

Sophomore guard Carlotta Kloppenburg made nine of 11 from 3-point land, scoring 30 points, to earn all-tournament honors as the Ventura College women's basketball team completed the first weekend of its season by winning the Vaquero Shootout at Glendale College.

Sophomore forward Destinee LaFountain had 18 points and 13 rebounds to earn tournament Most Valuable Player honors and sophomore guard Rebecca Griffin added 11 points as Ventura routed Irvine Valley, 85-55, in the title game Sunday afternoon.

"We've played two really good teams and we played about as hard as we could play at this point in the season," said Ventura coach Ned Mircetic. "We can build on this."

Ventura (3-0), ranked No. 3 in the Southern California preseason coaches' poll, scored eight of the game's first 10 points as Kloppenburg buried her first two from long range. She followed with a third to ignite a 13-0 run that began the build toward a 54-24 halftime lead.

"After I hit a couple, I just started feeling it and my teammates found me in the right spots," said Kloppenburg. "Being in rhythm and having your teammates find you is the thing."

The sophomore from Susanville, Calif. made 9 of 11 3-pointers, including 8 of 10 in the first half.

"I've come out a lot more confident this year and ready to go," said Kloppenburg.

Her 9 3s fell one short of Erika Ward's three-year-old school record. Kloppenburg was already No. 2 on the list, having made 8 3s last February at Oxnard.

"On every shot she took, she got a really good look at the rim," said Mircetic. "Every shot she took was out of our offense, so everyone contributed to her shot going in."

Irvine Valley (3-3) was led by 27 points from freshman forward Amber Wharton.

Ventura shot 31 of 60 from the field, out-rebounded Irvine Valley 42 to 25 and had 20 assists as a team, including six by Griffin and four by freshman Rian Mew.

The Pirates host their annual VC-Kiwanis Tournament of Champions this weekend, beginning Friday. The field includes No. 1 Mount San Antonio and No. 6 Canyons.

"If we play this hard and this well as a team," said Mircetic, "we'll be tough to deal with."

The football season may have just ended, but Ventura College quarterback Antavius Sims is already making the transition to basketball season.

The sophomore from Americus, Ga. practiced with the Ventura College men's basketball team (2-1) Monday and Tuesday and is expected to play this weekend in the Irvine Valley tournament.

"He might be a little worn down form taking the hits every weekend on the football field, so we'll bring him along slowly," said Ventura coach Will Cowen. "But he worked hard today and had great enthusiasm."

Sims averaged 7.6 points and 3.6 rebounds as a freshman, but was slowed by an ankle injury sustained on the football field. He scored in double figures in six of his final 10
games.

"He'll probably play limited minutes this weekend, until he gets his legs under him and learns the stuff we've been doing," said Cowen. "I don't anticipate him taking long."

A new system and a roster loaded with newcomers means the Moorpark College women's volleyball team is still waiting to come together.

Although the patient Raiders (6-6) are counting on the opening of divisional play this week to focus its play.

"We've lost a lot of close games, which is too bad," said Moorpark coach Steve Burkhart. "We're pretty solid. We've just lost a few five-game matches against some really good teams."

The Raiders had three match points in their five-game loss Sept. 23 at Irvine Valley, then ranked No. 3 in the state. They also dropped a five-game match to defending Western State Conference North Division champion Santa Barbara City at an early season tournament.

"Just kind of snake bit, but that's the sign of a team that hasn't had time to gel," said Burkhart. "We're focused on the conference schedule."

A pair of talented freshmen setters, Jessica Soprano (Buena) and Taylor Fredrick (Moorpark), has enabled Burkhart to go to a two-setter system.

"It maximizes our ability to have three hitters on the front row at all times," said Burkhart.

Moorpark's returners include middle blocker Chelcy Westphal, libero Erica Smith, outside hitter Morgan Vreeland and right side Breanne Metcalf.

Middle blocker Carissa Flack, a freshman from Newbury Park, leads the WSC in block assists (53) and is No. 4 in hitting percentage (.318). Outside hitter Shannon Pearson, a Thousand Oaks High product who transferred from Colgate, has also been a key newcomer.

Having opened WSC North play Tuesday with a three-game sweep of Oxnard, Moorpark visits Ventura tonight in search of its sixth-straight win in the cross-county rivalry dating back to Oct. 2007.

"We're not taking anything for granted, that's for sure," said Burkhart. "Nothing would make them happier than beating us."