Hutchinson CC Sports Information
DODGE CITY – Tied after two sets on Monday night against the Dodge City Conquistadors, the Hutchinson Community College volleyball team grinded out a pair of wins in sets 3 and 4 to earn a tough 3-1 KJCCC victory at the DC3 Student Events Center.
Fighting off a set point in the third set, the Blue Dragons defeated Dodge City 25-18, 24-26, 26-24, 25-23 to once again reach the .500 mark.
Hutchinson (11-11, 3-4 KJCCC) will play host to Butler at 6 p.m. on Wednesday at the Sports Arena. Dodge City is 9-10 overall and 3-4 in the league. The Dragons snap a four-match losing streak to the Conquistadors.
After the Blue Dragons hit .423 in the first set for a seven-point victory, the Dragons had a 22-19 second-set lead. Dodge City scored on 7 of the final 9 rallies in the set to upend Hutchinson 26-24 to knot the match at a set each.
But the Dragons found a way in sets 3 and 4.
Dodge City had a set point at 24-23 in the third set. A Jaylynn McNeill kill tied the set. The Dragons scored the final three points of the set, capped by a Clara Oliveira ace on set point for a 26-24 win and a 2-1 match lead.
The Dragons trailed 7-1 in the fourth set, but battled back with .459 hitting. Leading 24-22, the Dragons closed out the match with a McNeill/Mattie Galliher double block on match point.
McNeill had a match-high 16 kills, hitting .464 on 28 attacks – all three stats are season highs for the Blue Dragon sophomore.
Sophomore Alondra Villanueva had 14 kills on 31 swings for .226 hitting. Villanueva posted her eighth double-double of the season and her fourth in the last five matches with 21 digs. Freshman Lauren Vazquez had had 11 kills on 37 swings for .108 hitting. Sophomore Kierny Follmer had nine kills on .381 hitting.
The Blue Dragons hit .287 for the match with 56 kills on 129 swings.
Sophomore setter Angela Reupena finished with 48 assists and 14 digs for her third double-double of the season. She added three service aces, two kills and a block. Oliveira had 17 digs to extend her streak of 10 or more digs in a match to 22-consecutive matches.
The Blue Dragons out-hit Dodge City 56-44 and out-blocked the Conquistadors 9-7. Galliher had a team-high six blocks, while Follmer and McNeill had three blocks each.
SET 1: The Blue Dragons got off to strong start, building a 10-5 lead after a Galliher kill on an over-pass. Vazquez had a pair of aces in a 4-0 run that upped the lead to 16-9. A Galliher/Villanueva double block boosted the Dragon lead to 20-12. Dodge City pulled within 22-17, but the Dragons finished off the set with a 25-18 win.
SET 2: A Follmer kill on an over-pass gave the Blue Dragons a 12-8 lead. Dodge City answered the start with a 6-1 run to take a 14-13 lead. Trailing 21-18, two Reupena aces and kills from Villanueva and Galliher were part of a 5-0 Hutchinson run for a 21-18 lead. Dodge City scored 5 of the next 6 points for a 23-22 lead. The Dragons had a set point in hand at 24-23 after a McNeill kill and Conquistador attack error, but the Dragons couldn't finish off the set and the Conquistadors scored the final three points of the set for a 26-24 win to tie the match at 1-1.
SET 3: The third set had seven lead changes and eight ties and the Blue Dragons had to overcome a match-low .063 hitting in the set. The Dragons took advantage of five Dodge City service errors in the set. The Dragons rallied from a 14-11 deficit with a 5-1 run for a 16-15 lead. Dodge City led 23-20, but a Villanueva kills, a McNeill/Galliher double block and a Galliher solo block tied the set at 23. Dodge City took a 24-23 lead, but a pair of kills and an Oliveira ace completed a Hutchinson comeback for a 26-24 win and a 2-1 match lead.
SET 4: The Dragons trailed 7-1 in the fourth set, but rallied with an 8-2 run to tie the set at 9-all after a diving Oliveira dig led to a Villanueva kill. The Dragons then trailed 15-11 and 17-12 before mounting a comeback. The Dragons got the set tied at 19 on a Sorielys Dominquez ace serve. A Vazquez kill gave the Dragons a 23-20 lead to complete an 8-3 run. The Dragons then closed out the match with a McNeill kill and a McNeill/Galliher double block.