Fort Dodge, IA—The Marshalltown Community College Volleyball team put up a valiant effort in the 2016 season opener, but the Tigers fell on the road to Iowa Central Community College 3-0 on Tuesday night. The Tritons took the match in straight sets by scores of 25-19, 25-18, and 25-23.
Sophomore Jordan Carter (Sigourney, IA/Sigourney), a First-Team All-Region XI pick last season, picked up where she left off in 2015, tallying a team-high 10 kills on Tuesday night. Freshman Sara Bisbe (Barcelona, Spain/_) added eight kills and a team-high 16 digs while sophomore DaNesha Cowley (Waterloo, IA/Waterloo West) contributed seven kills.
In her first collegiate contest, freshman Nina Bales (Lacona, IA/Southeast Warren) registered 23 assists and two service aces.
After falling behind early in the opening set, the Tigers fought back to pull within one, 14-13 behind back-to-back points from Bisbe and Carter. Iowa Central managed to pull back ahead down the stretch, but a pair of consecutive points from Carter kept MCC alive. The Tigers got within four, but the Tritons prevailed to take the opener.
MCC carried its momentum into set two as Bales buried a kill to give the Tigers their first lead of the night. The Tritons regained the lead, but MCC stayed within striking distance throughout the early stages of set two. Costly errors from the Tigers allowed Iowa Central to slowly chip away and take the set.
The Tigers put forth their best effort in the third set, scoring the first three points of the frame. A back-and-forth battle ensued as the Tritons eventually took a 12-9 lead. Bales stepped up to the service line and delivered six unanswered points, including a pair of aces to give the Tigers a 15-12. The Tritons were able to regroup following a timeout and eventually went back on top to take the match in three sets.
MCC travels to the RKP Invite this weekend in Beatrice, NE, hosted by Southeast Community College. The Tigers open up against Cloud County Community College at 3:00 PM on Friday and will play a total of four matches between Friday and Saturday.
