Marshalltown, IA— Taking on its toughest competition of the season, the Marshalltown Community College Volleyball team fell in straight sets to No. 3 Iowa Western Community College in Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC) action on Friday night, 25-13, 25-15, and 25-9 at the Student Activity Center.
The Reivers (10-6, 1-1) never trailed on Friday night despite a strong start in the opening set from the Tigers. Nicole Montgomery (Beaman, IA/BCLUW) led MCC with eight kills on the night. Lannie Dubberke (Cambridge, IA/Ballard) added six and Jordan Carter (Sigourney, IA/Sigourney) tallied five. Paola Toledo (Boca Chica, Dominican Republic/San Rafael) and Carter each posted 12 digs while Raini Hilmer (Dysart, IA/Union) recorded 22 assists.
Dubberke recorded three total blocks on the night, upping her team-leading blocks per set total to 0.86 which ranks third in the ICCAC
MCC kept things tight in set one as Montgomery and DaNesha Cowley (Waterloo, IA/Waterloo West) recorded back-to-back points to pull the Tigers within one, 5-4. Down 11-8 to Iowa Western, the Reivers scored 14 of the next 19 points to take the opener.
Iowa Western built an early 5-1 lead in set two, but the Tigers rallied for a one-point deficit, 9-8. The Reivers fought off MCC down the stretch to go up two games to none.
Another quick start in set three gave the Reivers a 9-1 advantage, depleting any chance of a Tiger response as Iowa Western, ranked No. 3 in the latest NJCAA Division I Volleyball poll, took all three sets from MCC.
The Tigers head to Mason City, IA for the North Iowa Area Community College Quadrangular on Sunday. MCC will take on Grand View JV, a team that narrowly defeated MCC 3-2 on Sept. 15, at 2:00 PM and host NIACC at 3:30 PM.
