LEWISTON, Idaho – Twenty kills by
Cassidy Nelson and 11 service aces propelled LC State Volleyball to its first home victory of the season. The Warriors earned the 3-1 (26-24, 21-25, 25-22, 25-16) win over in-state rival College of Idaho to improve to 7-3 on the season and 3-2 in Cascade Collegiate Conference play.
LC outpaced the Yotes in nearly all aspects of the match with 52 kills compared to C of I's 40. The Warriors 11 aces were instrumental against the Yotes' two.
"This match had just about every emotion available for our players, coaches and the fans," Head Coach
Shaun Pohlman said. "Hats off to College of Idaho. They had a huge run-in with the injury bug this year and it was clear to see they played hard despite their circumstances – much respect."
Back-to-back kills by Nelson and a swing by
Grecia Ung Enriquez got the Warriors off to a 3-0 advantage in the opening set. The only two NAIA programs in Idaho traded leads until Ung Enriquez sparked a seven-point rally. The run featured a kill by Nelson and three straight service aces by Ung Enriquez to make it 20-13 in favor of LC.
The Yotes went on a seven-point run of their own to even the frame 20-20, a kill by Ung Enriquez and ace by
Vanja Tomic pushed LC to a 26-24 set win.
The back-and-forth picked back up in the second frame as the teams traded points until a four-point rally by LC gave the Warriors an 11-9 edge. Nelson sparked the run with a kill and
Jada Wyms and
Lisi Langi capped it with a kill. C of I answered with a 10-2 run to take a 19-13 lead.
The Warriors crept within two, 19-17, with a kill by Nelson and ace by Ung Enriquez, but another surge ended the set with C of I in front 25-21.
The Yotes maintained the momentum in the opening minutes of the third frame to take a 14-8 lead. A three-point span with a block by Wyms and Nelson and two kills by Langi kept the Warriors in the mix, but C of I stretched its advantage back to 20-15.
LC State turned things around in the set and stormed back to regain control. The Warriors mounted a 10-2 rally with four consecutive LC State kills coming from Nelson. Wyms and Langi teamed up for a block out of a C of I timeout, and a kill by Langi gave the Warriors a 22-21 advantage. Nelson tallied a kill before dished back-to-back service aces to end the frame at 25-22.
"The way the team rallied after being down 15-20 in the third set is really inspiring," Pohlman added. "I'm really proud of the way they responded."
The Warriors remained in the driver's seat in the fourth set to close out the night. A kill by Langi and ace by Nelson got the scoring started and a pair of kills from both Ung Enriquez and Nelson pushed the lead to 7-4. The Yotes pulled within one before three more kills by Nelson stretched the margin to 19-13.
LC State ended the night with a three-point run aided by a kill by Wyms.
Kenzie Dean closed things out with a service ace.
"It was amazing to see Cass, Esther and
Kenzie Dean step up tonight," Pohlman said. "All of them really lifted us up. Also, Vanja coming in off the bench in a limited role and finding a way to close out the first set, and again for the comeback in the third, was incredible."
Nelson led all players with 20 kills in the set to go with four digs and three service aces. Ung Enriquez was dangerous at the service line with four aces, and the sophomore added nine digs and seven kills. Langi was efficient offensively with 14 kills on 28 swings with no errors for a .500 attack percentage.
Dean led LC on defense with 21 digs, and
Esther Kailiponi dished a career-best 30 assists. Wyms put up five blocks and Langi contributed on four.
Janae Rayborn led C of I 16 kills, Analise Hitchcock dealt 30 assists and Clair Hodge collected 14 digs. Katie Black led the Yotes at the net with five blocks.
UP NEXT
The Warriors remain in Lewiston for another weekend of CCC action. LC State hosts Evergreen State on Sept. 16 and Northwest on Sept. 17. Tickets are available at
lcwarriors.com/tickets.
Stay up to date with all things Warrior Athletics at
lcwarriors.com and on social media @LCWarriors.
