(Sugar Grove, IL) –After recognizing their five second-year players in a short pre-game ceremony for Sophomore Night, Waubonsee Community College's women's volleyball team then took the court and surprised visiting McHenry County College, taking their Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference (ISCC) match three games to one. The victory in their final home match of the 2023 season clinched a second-place finish in the final ISCC standings for the Chiefs, evened Waubonsee's overall record and denied the Scots (19-8, 5-2) their 20th win of the season.
The Chiefs (12-12, 5-2) jumped out to a quick 7-2 lead in the first set highlighted by a kill from Elaina Evers and back-to-back service aces by Gianna Raimondi. Waubonsee maintained a comfortable 12-5 lead and extended it when Abby Colon and Chloe Mellman teamed up for block. A kill at the net from Mellman pushed the lead to 17-8 as the Chiefs worked to keep their momentum going. A minute later a pair of service errors by the Scots helped Waubonsee take a 20-10 lead. A thunderous spike by Evers a short time later made the score 22-13. Another service error by the Scots completed the Chiefs' 25-15 triumph in the opening set.
Waubonsee then tallied the opening point of game two as well. A block by Mellman and an ace by Joselyn Roche put the Chiefs ahead 4-2 in the early going. McHenry rallied to take a 7-6 lead before a net violation knotted the score. An emphatic block by Ella Bowgren then put Waubonsee in front as the back-and-forth battle played out. The Scots surged ahead 13-9 and kept the Chiefs at bay holding a 16-12 lead several volleys later. A pair of kills by Evers pulled Waubonsee within 20-15. However, the Scots height advantage and power game gradually emerged as they won game two 25-18.
A power spike by Evers staked the Chiefs to a 4-2 lead early in the third set. Moments later a kill by Colon extended the lead to 8-3. Another kill by Colon helped give the home team an 11-4 advantage. Waubonsee led by as many as nine points before the Scots clawed their way to within six points on three different occasions. Back-to-back aces by McHenry's Valle Leggett and a block suddenly got the Scots within striking distance at 18-16. A long volley eventually went Waubonsee's way when a return shot by the Scots went out of bounds for a 20-17 Chiefs' lead. Moments later Colon registered consecutive kills to make it 22-18. A net violation by McHenry then set up game point for Waubonsee and Bowgren delivered an ace for a 25-19 win.
The teams traded points to start the fourth game with the score tied at 3-all early on. It was deadlocked at 5-all when Colon dumped a return shot in between the heart of the Scots' defense. Colon recorded another kill to knot the score once more at 8-all. McHenry responded to tie the game at 10 not long after. A kill by Evers off a perfect feed from Raimondi put the Chiefs ahead 12-10. A minute later Raimondi and Tauja Crump tallied a dual block for a point to make the score 14-10 and prompting McHenry head coach Kyle McCall to request a timeout. A handful of volleys later saw the Scots pull within 16-15 after a back row, power kill by Leggett.
It was Waubonsee head coach Megan Kronschnabel's turn to call timeout and when play resumed a service error by the Scots put the Chiefs in front by two points again as they tried to hold on. A kill and an ace by McHenry's Issy Nick tied the score again at 18. The set was deadlocked once more at 20 after a return error by the Scots. A kill and an ace by Colon put the Chiefs ahead 22-21. However, the Scots booked the next two points to take the lead before a service error on McHenry evened things again at 23. Facing game point Evers scored a kill to tie it and Raimondi followed with an ace to set up a potential match point for Waubonsee. Seconds later Nick's return shot sailed out of bounds as Waubonsee completed the win 26-24.
Colon finished with 18 kills to pace the Chiefs' offense. Raimondi recorded 36 assists, served up three aces and made two solo blocks, while Norah Molitor contributed 17 digs in the win.
