The No. 16 ranked Barton Community College volleyball team bounced back from a disappointing three-match slide Wednesday evening at the Power Plant, sweeping Butler Community College (25-19, 25-17, 25-22).
The victory not only halted the Cougars' slide but marked their fourth straight win in El Dorado and fifth consecutive victory in the series. Barton improves to 2-2 in KJCCC play and 12-7 overall while Butler slips to 1-3 in league play and 6-7 on the season.
Barton returns home for its next match Saturday with a 1:00 p.m. first serve against Pratt Community College.
Despite mixing lineups throughout the night in the absence of outside hitter Caroliny Cristiny, Barton steadily found its offensive rhythm. The Cougars improved from .080 hitting in the opening set to .231 in the second before putting away 17 kills without an attack error on a sizzling .415 third-set attack. Barton finished the night hitting .269 while holding Butler to .136.
Kiera Loe's first double-double performance as a Cougar led the squad with 12 kills and 13 digs. Amanda Riepe just missed her third collegiate double-double, recording nine kills on a .226 attack with 12 digs and two aces, while Brylynn Wicker led the efficiency with six kills on a .385 attack while also leading the front line with four total blocks.
Running a 5-1 throughout the match, Mileah Neal handled the setting duties in the opening frame before Natalia Nowak directed the offense over the final two sets. Nowak distributed 22 assists while adding eight digs, with Neal recording three assists in her lone set of action.
Anchoring the back row, Jaden Katsis collected a career-high 23 digs while serving a pair of aces. Her 23 digs were 10 more than the next-highest Cougar as Barton finished with a 63-53 advantage in the category.
Set-by-Set Recap
First Set: Barton's early three-point swing erased an initial deficit before Butler responded with five straight to grab a 9-6 lead. Behind a pair of Katsis service aces, the Cougars countered with a 5-0 run to take the lead for good. Tacking on another four straight, Barton stretched the margin to 17-11 before essentially trading points the rest of the way in securing the 25-19 opening-set victory.
Second Set: The Cougars again had to fight back from an early deficit, using a 4-0 run to draw even at 7 before surging ahead for good behind a 4-1 stretch for an 11-9 advantage. The teams traded points through the middle stages before four straight opened Barton's lead to 22-16. Following a Butler point, the Cougars slammed the door with three straight for the 25-17 victory and commanding two-set advantage.
Third Set: Barton gained the early edge for the first time on the evening, racing out to a 4-1 advantage before stretching the margin to five on multiple occasions, including at 15-10. Butler clawed back behind a pair of three-point swings to draw even at 16, with the teams remaining deadlocked through 19-all.
Loe helped spark the Cougars' finishing push, delivering a kill to cap a 3-0 run before Butler answered with a pair to trim the margin to one. Loe struck again to push Barton to match point at 24-21. The Grizzlies grabbed the next point, but following a video review, the Cougars were awarded the final point to wrap up the 25-22 victory and straight-set sweep.