Norfolk, NE—The Marshalltown Community College volleyball team fought back from multiple deficits throughout the day, including an eight-point margin, but the Tigers were outlasted on the road by Northeast Community College on Saturday, falling in four sets.
MCC got off to a slow start after dropping the first set 25-14, but battled back to take set two 25-23. The Tigers fought off a series of deficits in set three but could not overcome the lengthy set as Northeast went up 2-1 with a 28-26 win. The Hawks proved to be too much in the final frame, finishing off the Tigers 25-18.
Freshman Sara Bisbe (Barcelona, Spain/CV Saint Cugat) led the Tigers with 16 kills, including five in the final set. Freshman Nina Bales (Lacona, IA/Southeast Warren) tallied 28 assists on the day while sophomore DaNesha Cowley (Waterloo, IA/Waterloo West) recorded four total blocks in the loss.
After stumbling out of the gate in the opening set, the Tigers put together an all-around solid performance to rally in set two. After taking a 16-15 lead following a kill from Nicole Montgomery (Beaman, IA/BCLUW), the Hawks scored five of the next six points to take a three-point lead. After an MCC timeout, Bisbe came out swinging, putting together a pair of kills to tie the match at 23. MCC came all the way back behind the service of Bales to even the match at 1-1.
Northeast came out in set three and built a marginal lead at 19-11, but the Tigers strung together 10 of the next 14 points to pull within two, 23-21. Following a timeout, the Tigers were able to tie the match at 24-all and again at 25. Cowley's kill put the Tigers ahead 26-25, but the momentum ended there as Northeast took the set 28-26.
The Hawks' depth was the key factor in the fourth set as MCC fell to 4-12 on the year with the loss.
The Tigers' road trip continues with a match at Southwestern Community College at 7:00 PM on Sept. 26. MCC defeated the Spartans 3-1 on August 27 in Beatrice, NE.
