(Sugar Grove, IL) - Waubonsee Community College stayed at the top of the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference (ISCC) volleyball standings by knocking off the College of Lake County in three straight games. The Chiefs (18-7, 5-0) moved a step closer to capturing their second consecutive ISCC title by downing the visiting Lancers (4-15, 1-3) by scores of 25-13, 25-18 and 25-11. In the process Waubonsee also likely kept pace with Moraine Valley Community College, which also entered the evening 4-0 in the ISCC. The Cyclones, 13-2 overall and ranked 17th nationally in the latest NJCAA Division II poll, were hosting last place Prairie State College this evening. The Chiefs and Cyclones are set to meet in Sugar Grove on Wednesday, Oct. 9 in what could be a potential conference title showdown.
Keyed by three straight service aces by Sydney Fedderly, the Chiefs jumped out to a 9-2 lead in the first game. An ace by Lydia Sabanish and a block by Alyssa Gittins put Waubonsee ahead 15-8 and prompted a Lake County timeout. After the halt in play Gittins recorded back-to-back aces as the Chiefs pushed their lead to 18-8. A pair of kills by Rebecca Robinson and another by Fedderly from the right side made it 24-13. Waubonsee then recorded the game-winning point when a Lancers' return shot sailed out of bounds.
Fedderly opened the second set with an emphatic kill to spark the Chiefs to an early 6-1 lead. The Lancers battled back to within 11-8 before Robinson scored a kill from the right side. Waubonsee then extended the lead to 19-10 on a kill by Sydni Coultrip resulting in another Lake County timeout. A few minutes later Coultrip tallied another kill, the sixth straight point for the Chiefs with Riane Tomsa serving, to put the Chiefs in front 22-10. The Lancers then reeled off eight of the next 10 points before Fedderly finished what she started with a perfectly placed return shot, softly tapping the ball over the Lancers' defense to end game two.
Fedderly then set the tone for game three by registering five straight aces on the way to an early 8-1 Chiefs' lead. Kills by Evelyn Martin and Gittins pushed the lead to 12-3. A block by Lake County's Emma Fitzgibbons temporarily stopped Waubonsee's momentum at 16-8. However, a few moments later Maddie Mueller recorded a kill from the left side to stake the Chiefs to a 20-7 advantage. Shortly after that Gittins booked an ace to make it 23-7 before the Lancers scored four straight points. Coultrip then secured the match point with a kill that deflected off the Lancers' attempted block and bounced out of bounds in front of their bench.
Coultrip ended the night with nine kills, 10 assists and 10 digs. Gabrielle Dlabal added eight kills and two solo blocks to up her season total to 60, which places her fourth nationally among NJCAA Division II players in solo blocks. Robinson ended the evening with six kills and 19 assists, while Tomsa contributed 22 digs. Fedderly, who leads the nation with 285 kills, served up nine aces and made 14 digs. The freshman from Kaneland High School now has 56 aces on the season to tie Robinson for second nationally in service aces.
Waubonsee is not in action again until a week from now when they host Morton College next Wednesday, Oct. 2 in an ISCC match. The battle between the Chiefs and Panthers is set to begin at 6:00 p.m. and can be viewed on-line 'live' at www.GoChiefs.com with IBCA Hall of Fame announcer Mark Krueger and Bruce Beiritz calling all the action.