Marshalltown, IA—On the opening day of the 2013 Tiger Invitational, the Marshalltown Community College women's volleyball team swept its competition, scoring three victories on the day. The Tigers opened up the tournament with a three-set victory over Fort Scott Community College. MCC later defeated Coffeyville Community College in a thrilling 3-2 victory and closed out the night with a 3-1 win over Graceland JV.
The Tigers, who struggled offensively in their last match against Iowa Lakes, saw exceptional efforts at the net from Meghann Cole (Des Moines, IA/West Des Moines Valley), Katelyn Yauslin (Cedar Rapids, IA/Alburnett) and Sam Hinrichs (Ankeny, IA/Ankeny). Cole totaled a team-high 34 kills on the day while Yauslin tallied 29 and Hinrichs added 21. Hinrichs also posted 104 assists and added 66 digs over the three matches.
The defense was once again anchored by veterans Ashley Salgado (Ottumwa, IA/Ottumwa) and Alyssa Whitmore (Legrand, IA/East Marshall). Salgado posted 167 digs while Whitmore came up with 87 digs. Whitmore posted a team-high five service aces as well. Reeba Box (Liscomb, IA/BCLUW) and Miranda Smith (Albion, IA/Marshalltown) played tall at the net, blocking eight shots apiece.
MCC defeated Fort Scott, who had suffered a 3-0 loss to Des Moines Area Community College in the opening match of the invite, in straight sets 25-22, 25-11, and 25-15.
After a one-match layover, MCC came back at 5:00 PM to take on Coffeyville. The Tigers lost both meetings during the 2012 season to the Ravens, winning just two sets. Coffeyville continued its winning ways with the Tigers on Friday to open up the match, taking the first series 25-20. Head coach Chris Brees was able to ignite the offense as the Tigers rallied to take the next two sets, 25-15 and 25-20. The Ravens jumped out early on MCC in the fourth set, building a 13-5 advantage, only to see the Tigers rally back. A last ditch effort by MCC came up short as the Ravens evened the match with a 25-21 victory.
As the match broke the two hour mark, both teams traded points back and forth in the tiebreaker set as neither side saw a lead larger than one through the first 10 points. Finally the Tigers were able to pull away, dropping the Ravens 15-13 to improve to 2-0 on the day.
The Tigers provided solid individual efforts in the team win against the Ravens. Salgado posted a day-high 61 digs and served up two aces. Whitmore also provided a strong defensive effort, recording 31 digs and also adding two service aces. Hinrichs provided an all-around effort for the Tigers, registering 33 assists while also pounding out 10 kills at the net to lead the Tigers.
After a high-strung effort against Coffeyville, MCC opened up its final match against Graceland JV with a back-and-forth battle to see the Tigers pull out a 29-27 victory. MCC dropped the next set 25-23 before taking the next two, 25-22 and 25-17 to complete the three-game sweep.
After the loss to Iowa Lakes, Brees realized a shakeup in the lineup was necessary. "We made some changes all over the court and we finally clicked," said Brees. "Everything came together throughout the entire day and we improved tremendously. Today was a solid effort by the entire team."
Fellow Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC) member Des Moines Area Community College, ranked No. 13 in the latest NJCAA Division II poll, also had an unblemished mark on the day, going 2-0. No. 9 ranked Lincoln Land recorded a perfect 2-0 mark on the day as well.
The invite resumes at 9:00 AM tomorrow in the Student Activity Center with the Tigers taking on Allen County Community College. After a length break, the Tigers take on Lincoln Land at 3:00 PM and close out the invite with a rematch against Graceland JV at 5:00 PM.
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