By Christian Vieyra (@thecvieyra) – Spear Reporter | Photo by Titus Wilkinson
Tears ran down her face.
“It’s still really fresh,” fifth-year senior Yazmin Pitpit said on her emotions moments after her final game as a Spartan.
“It just kind of hit me that I’m out of this program,” Pitpit said while choking up. “But I’m super proud to leave this place better than I found it.”
SJSU had finally snapped its six-game losing streak, defeating San Diego State 3-1. The Spartans also won a set, something they hadn’t accomplished in the ten previous sets, to start the game.
Before the match, SJSU seniors Lauren Conroy, Jiana Lawson, and Letizia Cammillucci were honored alongside Pitpit.
“I think the vibes were great,” Cammillucci said on the team’s mood before her final match at SJSU. “Everybody was really emotionally ready to play for the seniors.”
The Spartans had nothing to lose, and they knew it. “I had no nerves,” Pitpit said on her pregame feelings.
In the fourth set, momentum had swung to the Aztecs’ side as they led 18-13.
But the Spartans weren’t distressed. “I look at them and they’re even calmer than I am,” Cammillucci said on her teammates during the final set.
The fans in attendance rose to their feet as SJSU stormed back taking a 24-22 lead.
“I got goosebumps because I knew we were gonna win that set on that point,” Cammillucci said.
She was right. The Spartans won the fourth set 25-22.
The Spartans comeback included outscoring the Aztecs 12-4 to finish the match.
For SJSU head coach Todd Kress, “it was a relief.”
They stormed the court, celebrating their first win since Oct. 26.
“This last game, just the love that everybody brought, that makes a whole difference,” Pitpit said.
Then reality set in for the seniors. The waterworks began as memories flooded back.
“Every single time I think back, it’s the people that I was with,” Pitpit said on her time as a Spartan. “The memories are all because of the people.”
Cammillucci’s sentiment was similar. “I just felt so much love and so cared about,” she said while hugging multiple bouquets of flowers she was gifted postgame.
The Spartans’ come-from-behind win concluded the tumultuous, injury-plagued season. SJSU finished with a 13-18 overall record and a 4-14 Mountain West Conference record.
Kress recalled how the Spartans had close matches they couldn’t close throughout his first season at the helm. “We’ve been on the short end of the stick,” he said. “We were able to gut one out, so to speak, at the end and win on a good note for our seniors who have done so much for this program.”