HCC VOLLEYBALL
Hutchinson (2-2, 0-0) vs. Colby (4-2, 1-0)
Date: Wednesday, August 29, 2012
At: Hutchinson Sports Arena
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Video/Audio: Blue Dragon Sports Network (BlueDragonSports.com)
Hutchinson Community College's faithful volleyball fans will get their first look at the 2012 Lady Dragons open the Jayhawk West season against the Colby Trojans at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday at the Hutchinson Sports Arena.
For the first time this season, Lady Dragon volleyball will be videostreamed on the Blue Dragon Sports Network with the stream beginning around 6:15 p.m.
The Lady Dragons come into the home and conference opener after a 2-2 weekend at the New Mexico Military Invitational in Roswell, N.M. The highlight of the weekend was a dominant sweep of No. 11 Seminole State on Saturday. That victory came in between a pair of tough five-set losses.
That victory carried a milestone as Hutchinson won its 900th volleyball team in team history, which dates back to 1974.
Colby has already opened the Jayhawk West season. The Trojans swept Garden City on Monday night at home, defeating the Broncbusters 25-15, 25-15, 25-21. Colby went 3-2 on opening weekend, but have won three-straight matches entering Wednesday's match.
Last season, Colby swept two regular-season matches, defeating Hutch 3-0 in Colby and 3-1 at the Sports Arena. The Lady Dragons got some revenge, though, in the Region VI Tournament, defeating Colby in a five-set thriller to end the Trojans' season.
This is Hutchinson's lone match of the week. HCC is in the midst of a three-match homestand. Next Wednesday, September 5, Pratt comes to the Sports Arena and on Saturday, September 8, HCC entertains Seward County in a key early Jayhawk West match.
Noting The Lady Dragons
Hutchinson enters play on Wednesday hitting .278 as a team.
The Lady Dragons captured all-time victory No. 900 on Aug. 25 with a 3-0 victory over No. 11 Seminole State.
Against South Mountain on Aug. 24, the Lady Dragons hit .405, marking the first time since hitting .426 vs. Spartanburg Methodist in the 2009 NJCAA Tournament that the Lady Dragons have hit .400 or better in a match.
The 25-21, 25-16, 25-15 victory over No. 11 Seminole State on Aug. 25 was HCC's first victory over a nationally-ranked team since bumping off No. 10 San Jacinto in the ninth-place match at the 2009 NJCAA Tournament.
Since the beginning of the 2010 season, Hutchinson has now played in 21 five-set matches. HCC's record in those matches is 8-13, including 0-2 this season.
In 2011, the Lady Dragons were quite used to playing five-set matches. The Lady Dragons were involved in 12 matches that went the distance, going 5-7 in those matches.
Sophomore Jade Nelson leads the team in kills and hitting percentage at 2.50 kills/set and a .449 attack percentage. Freshman Teresa Wade is second in kills at .247 per set and Gabby Rushton is third at 1.88 kills per set. Rushton is second in hitting percentage at .431 and freshman Megan Heier is third at .341. Four Lady Dragons - Wade hit hitting .300 - it hitting ,300 or better.
HCC's 6-2 offense is being run by a pair of sophomore setters. Scout Heizer is averaging 5.56 set assists per set by Ashlyn Westerman is averaging 4.06. HCC is averaging 10.3 assists as a team.
The Lady Dragons' back-row defense was solid on opening weekend with freshman libero Samantha Lackey leading the way with 3.94 digs/set. Scout Heizer is second at 2.06 digs/set and freshman Taylor Karcher is third at 1.88 digs per/set. The Lady Dragons are averaging 13.5 digs per set as a team.
Middle blockers Megan Heier and Gabby Rushton lead the HCC block. Both are averaging 0.81 blocks per set, while Jade Nelson is third at 0.69. As a team, HCC is averaging 2.22 blocks per set as a team.
Scouting Colby
Colby opened Jayhawk West play with a 25-15, 25-15, 25-21 victory over Garden City on Monday night in Colby.
The Trojans went 3-2 on opening weekend, defeating Eastern Wyoming, Williston State and McCook while losing matches to Northeastern Colorado and North Platte.
Colby has won nine-straight sets since being swept by North Platte.
Colby is hitting .172 as a team
Middle blocker Bailey Pfortmiller hit .467 and averaged 3.1 kills per set over the weekend. Freshman setter Maisy Munson averaged almost 5 assists per set.
Colby was 28-15 last season and finished second in the Jayhawk West at 11-3.
(HCC Sports Information)
