By STEVE CARPENTER - Hutchinson CC Sports Information
GREAT BEND – Despite gaudy offensive numbers from Jenna Thorne and Kristina Head and a huge team block total, the Hutchinson Community College volleyball team couldn't finish the Barton Cougars in a five-set Jayhawk West loss Thursday night at the Barton Gym.
Down two sets to one and 20-15 in the fourth, the Barton Cougars fought off two match points against and completed a regular-season sweep of the Blue Dragons in a 3-2 Jayhawk West victory over Hutchinson.
The Blue Dragons the tightly contested match 27-25, 18-25, 26-24, 25-27, 10-15.
The loss snaps the Blue Dragons' winning streak at eight matches as Hutchinson falls to 14-6 overall and 7-3 in the Jayhawk West. Barton solidifies its hold on second place in the West at 6-1 and are 14-3 overall. The Cougars own the head-to-head tie-breaker with the Blue Dragons with the series sweep.
Leading the match 2-1, the Blue Dragons took a 20-15 lead in the fourth set on a Head service ace. From that point, the Blue Dragon serve receive started to falter and Hutch started to have a tough time stopping Barton right-side hitter Maria Santos, who had four kills and a block assist in the final nine rallies of the fourth set and three more kills in the fifth.
Hutch had match points and 24-23 and 25-24 and Barton rallied to force a fifth set, scoring the final three points to win the fourth 27-25. Then in the fifth, Barton scored the first four points of the set and Hutchinson had eight attack errors to aid the Cougar effort.
The Blue Dragons are now 2-2 in five-set matches this season. This was the fourth-straight season the Blue Dragons went to five sets at the Barton Gym.
Thorne led the Blue Dragons with 20 kills, three aces and a pair of blocks. She posted her 13th double-double of the season with 11 digs.
Head finished with 15 kills and seven block assists. Shadee Briggs had 10 kills.
Setter Chloe Price had a career-high 52 assists to go with six blocks, one ace and one kill. The 52 assists tie for 11th most in Blue Dragon single-match history.
Libero Shelby Reeder tied Thorne for team-high honors with 11 digs.
Hutchinson out-blocked Barton 15-9. Myracle Lettries added six block assists and Taegen Larson had a season-high five total blocks.
Santos had a match-high 22 kills to lead Barton. Mylena Testoni, Barton's leading hitter, had 13 kills.
The Blue Dragons are off until Monday when they play on back-to-back nights both at the Sports Arena. Hutchinson plays Independence at 6 p.m. on Monday for Sophomore Night. The Dragons play Garden City at 6 p.m. on Tuesday in a make-up of a postponed match on February 25.