By TODD MOORE
Barton Sports Info
Having a pair of set victories slip through their fingers, the 5th ranked Barton Community College volleyball team dropped its Wednesday evening battle of national ranked teams as 8th ranked Colby Community College capitalized for a 3-1 victory (19-25, 27-25, 25-22, 26-24).
After taking the first set, Barton led by three late in the second and had set point twice only to have the Trojans rally and score the final three tallies to even the match. Colby gained separation late in the third to grab a 2-1 match lead but with Barton owning set point in what would be the decisive frame, the Trojans rallied again with the last three points pulling off their first victory on Barton's home court since 2018.
Snapping the Cougars' 10-match win streak, the result puts both teams atop the KJCCC standings at 10-1 with Barton slipping to 23-2 overall as Colby improves to 20-2.
Next up for the Cougars is another home match coming Saturday in a 6:00 p.m. first serve hosting Seward County Community College.
Five players reached double-digit kills on the evening, Phoebe Reyes' 18 leading Barton with Kassidy Nixon recording her 9th double-double of the season behind 10 kills and 14 digs.
Colby's Karlotta Kattai led all players with a career high 21 kills with 12 digs for her 7th double-double, Celia Mboya recorded 19 kills, and Viola Giangreco added 15 kills.
Barton struck for over .360 in both the first and second sets, finishing at .243 while Colby stayed fairly consistent all night for a .253 overall attack.
Elena Stankovic's 26 assists and Maurin Reyes' 18 keyed Barton's offense with Amanda Caputi putting up 53 assists for the Trojans.
The Cougars' backline was led by the 13 digs by both Nixon and Mina Kaneko with Naya Danenberg collecting 10 digs.
Anna Wierzbicki accounted for five of the Cougars' 10 total blocks, Mya Thompson and Aubrey Olander each adding four.
Colby was led by Camila Canedo' 18 digs with Boglarka Kiss adding 14.
RECAPAn early four-point run put the Cougars out front in the opener as a .360 attack kept Colby from drawing any closer than two the rest of the set.
The 14th tie of the second set was pivotal in not only the frame but perhaps had match implications. After Barton's initial set point was spoiled, the Cougars were again on the verge of taking the frame but a miscommunication on an attack resulted in the final tie leading the Trojans' 3-0 close out in tying the match.
A 6-0 run put the Trojans in the driver's seat at 9-5 to begin the third, Barton later closing to within 17-16 before Colby responded with three straight in going on to win by three as the Cougars hit for a night low .234 with seven attack errors.
Barton again struggled at .220 with six more attack errors in the fourth frame but did enough to keep in and have a chance to tie the match. Leading 13-9 with another four-point advantage at 14-10, Barton's lead turned into a one-point deficit behind a 4-0 run and 6-of-7 from the Trojans. With the deficit growing to 20-17, Barton clawed back with three straight for the tie, trading two-point runs with the Trojans before surging ahead behind another two-pack of points at 24-23. The third time of having set point on the night was not the charm for Barton, seeing the Trojans pull-off another comeback with the final three points clinching the match 26-24.