COLBY – Since the beginning of the 2010 season, the five-set record of the Hutchinson Community College volleyball team is 8-12 with losses in the last four matches to go the distance, including two this season.
The Lady Dragons snapped that streak and won its fifth match in a row as they outlasted Colby 23-25, 25-18, 25-19, 19-25, 15-11 to open the second half of the 2012 Jayhawk West season on Wednesday at the Colby Community Building.
Hutchinson trailed the first set 16-6 before nearly coming all the way back. Then after two fairly decisive wins in sets two and three, the Lady Dragons hit just .038 on six kills as Colby rallied to force a fifth set.
HCC jumped out early and never looked back as the Lady Dragons hit .292 to win their first five setter of the season, winning 15-11.
Freshman Teresa Wade posted her eighth double-double of the season with 11 kills and 17 digs. She hit .261 on 23 swings.
Freshman Megan Heier had a big match, hitting .336 on nine kills and only one error on 12 attacks. Heier added a season-high eight blocks (1 solo, 7 assists) and she had three service aces, also s season high.
Sophomores Shayne Haley and Jade Nelson had eight kills each. Nelson added six block assists. Sophomore Gabby Rushton had dive kills and four blocks, while freshman Mariah Dickson had five kills and three blocks.
The Lady Dragons hit .228 as a team with 12 team blocks, 65 digs and five service aces.
Sophomore setter Scout Heizer had 23 set assists and six digs. Sophomore setter Ashlyn Westerman 20 assists and seven digs. Freshman libero Samantha Lackey had her 14th consecutive match of double-figure digs with 15. Freshman defensive specialist Taylor Karcher had 11 digs.
Sophomore Kayla Karmazyn came into the match in that decisive fifth set and sparked Hutchinson with a pair of kills as HCC had 10 kills and only three attack errors on 24 swings in the fifth set.
The Lady Dragons will play Pratt at Noon and Frank Phillips College at 2 p.m. on Saturday in a triangular at Pratt. Both matches can be seen on the Blue Dragon Sports Network.
MATCH NOTES – Teresa Wade’s 17 digs tied a Jayhawk West match high this season. … This is the first sweep of a season series against Colby since 2009. … Since 2001, Hutchinson is 22-24 in five-set matches. … HCC is 3-3 when losing the first set. … HCC has won two-straight five-set matches vs. Colby. The last was the 2011 Region VI Tournament elimination game at Newman University in Wichita. … The last regular-season five-set victory was against Indian Hills at the Jefferson College Tournament on Oct. 31, 2011.
(HCC Sports Information)
