(Sugar Grove, IL) – Visiting Triton College denied Waubonsee Community College's women's volleyball team from extending their winning streak to three matches by downing the Chiefs three games to two Thursday evening in Erickson Hall. The Trojans (14-10) took game one 25-16 and won game two 25-10 before the Chiefs (6-17) turned things around to win game three 25-12. Triton got the upper hand early in the fourth game before Waubonsee rallied late to overcome a 9-point deficit and win 25-21 to force a fifth and final game. The Trojans then had their own comeback as they scored five straight points down the stretch to win the fifth set 15-12 and take the nail-biting match.  

In the opening game the Trojans tallied the first two points of the match. A fantastic diving save by Emalee Wiley helped the Chiefs tie the game at two-all a minute later.  However, Triton booked six of the next seven points to grab an 8-3 lead and force Chiefs' head coach Megan Kronschnabel to call timeout. The Trojans pulled ahead 10-4 before Waubonsee's Jordan Weber registered a power spike to highlight three straight points for the Chiefs. Weber drilled another kill two minutes later off an assist from Gianna Raimondi, and then added a block as the Chiefs tried to stay within striking distance midway through the contest. A huge block by the Trojans front line sparked them to an 18-10 lead as they took control of the game. Waubonsee chipped away at the deficit, but could not get any closer than 22-16 as the Trojans' front line of Neicy Walker, Tanya DeLaRiva and Annette Zavala made a pair of blocks to stymie the Chiefs.

Game two resembled the opener at the outset as Triton scored the first two points again. The Trojans then grabbed an 8-2 lead highlighted by a pair of thunderous spikes by DeLaRiva and a block by Walker. Triton maintained their momentum and built a commanding 13-3 lead. Waubonsee could not get on track offensively as the Trojans surged ahead 20-4. An extended volley was finally won by Triton to make it 22-5. Facing game point the Chiefs reeled off five straight points before a service error ended the game 25-10 in favor of the visitors. However, that little streak by Waubonsee was sign of things to come.

Waubonsee began game three with a pair of service aces from Weber and a kill by Abby Colon on the way to grabbing an early 4-0 lead. The Chiefs held an 8-4 lead before Zavala recorded another block for Triton. Weber answered with two kills a minute later for a 12-6 lead as Waubonsee worked to pull away from the Trojans. A power slam by Weber and an ace from Norah Molitor helped spark the offense as the Chiefs ran off seven straight points to jump ahead 19-7. Another kill from Weber made it 21-8 as Waubonsee put themselves in a great position to stay alive in the match. A kill from the left side by Colon put the Chiefs into position to win the game at 24-12. Sarah Sandusky then finished it off with a return tap shot that went off a Trojans' player and out of bounds to force a fourth contest.

The fourth game started with another kill by Weber, one of her 17 on the night. Triton responded by taking the next five points highlighted by kills from Zavala and DeLaRiva. The Trojans then grabbed an 8-2 lead prompting a Chiefs' timeout. When play resumed Triton took control quickly by scoring four of the next five points for a 12-3 advantage. However, four kills by Weber momentarily stopped the Trojans' momentum as Waubonsee cut the deficit to 14-8. After a Triton timeout the Chiefs then cut the lead to four points on an ace by Weber. Waubonsee pulled to within 16-13 before DeLaRiva answered with a power kill. A moment later Raimondi served up an ace to get Waubonsee within two points at 17-15. Two minutes later Colon delivered an ace to again cut the deficit to two at 19-17. A long volley was eventually won by the Chiefs to make it 19-18 and a double-hit by Triton allowed Waubonsee to tie the game at 19. The Chiefs then booked four more consecutive points to grab a 23-19 lead. A return error by Triton gave Waubonsee seven straight points and put them one away from victory at 24-20. Raimondi then won it with a misdirection tap from the middle of the floor that hit the net and rolled over to find an open spot of the court on Triton's side.

In the decisive fifth game Waubonsee took an early 4-1 lead courtesy of two kills by Weber. Miscommunication by a pair of Trojan players allowed the Chiefs to tally another point forcing Triton head coach Thomas Malesky to call timeout. Waubonsee went in front 6-1 before the teams traded service errors. A block by DeLaRiva for a point cut the Chiefs' lead to 7-4. Waubonsee held an 8-5 lead before Weber drilled a kill from the middle of the net and followed it up with another from the left side for a 10-5 lead. The Chiefs needed just five more points to finish their comeback and steal the match, but Triton had other ideas. Shortly thereafter DeLaRiva scored on a soft return tap to pull Triton to within 10-8 as the Chiefs desperately tried to hold off the Trojans. A minute later Triton tied the game at 12-all and Waubonsee called timeout. Triton then got the upper hand by scoring the next point and another when Zavala made a huge block to set up match point for the Trojans. Triton won the set and the match when a Chiefs' return shot hit into the net to the delight of the visitors. 

Weber finished the night with the aforementioned 17 kills to help lead the way for the Chiefs. Raimondi added an all-around performance with 37 assists, 17 digs, six kills and two aces. Colon booked 14 kills and was credited with 41 digs, while Wiley contributed 35 digs in a valiant effort for Waubonsee. The Chiefs are in action again tomorrow evening, Friday, October 21 when they host Joliet Junior College in a 6:00 p.m. match.