Utilizing its roster depth while resting four regular starters, the No. 19-ranked Barton Community College volleyball team rolled to a straight-set road victory Wednesday evening at Pratt Community College, dispatching the Beavers 25-15, 25-20 and 25-14 at Dennis Lesh Sports Arena.
With Kiera Loe, Mileah Neal, Jaden Katsis and Hotone Tarui sitting out and Mariam Urazbakhtina and Irmak Navruz seeing limited action, the Cougars secured their 21st consecutive victory in the series and ninth straight on Pratt's home floor.
The victory improves Barton to 10-4 in KJCCC play and 20-9 overall while Pratt falls to 0-13 in conference action and 1-21 on the season. The Cougars return home Saturday for a 6:00 p.m. first serve against Garden City Community College at Fleske Fieldhouse.
By the Numbers
Barton recorded its second consecutive match hitting above .300, putting down 45 kills on .303 hitting while committing just 15 attack errors across 99 swings. The Cougars also delivered 11 service aces against just three errors and collected 63 digs in the victory.
Amanda Riepe led the Cougar attack with a career-high-tying 14 kills on .440 hitting in just two sets of action, matching her previous best established against Hutchinson. Riepe also contributed six digs, a service ace and three blocks.
Makenna Rasmussen made the most of her opportunity, delivering a career-high 13 kills on .267 hitting, surpassing her previous best of nine established in the first meeting with Pratt. Brylynn Wicker added eight kills on .333 hitting with two blocks, while Urazbakhtina contributed six kills on .556 hitting in her lone set of action.
Returning to the primary setting role, Natalia Nowak distributed 33 of the Cougars' 41 assists while collecting 14 digs for her fourth double-double of the season.
Defensively, Kailyn Follis led the Cougars with 16 digs while serving three aces and distributing four assists. Cassidy Smith added nine digs, while Ana Fabiely Fachi anchored the net with two solo blocks and an assisted block, five digs, and a service ace.
Navruz contributed three aces in her lone set of action, while Kimberly Hofflinger added two aces and Cheyenne Ackerman chipped in an ace and two assists.
Set-by-Set Recap
First Set: Pratt used an early four-point run to grab the advantage before Barton answered with six straight to move ahead 8-5. The Cougars maintained their slim margin until midway through the frame, breaking open a 14-13 lead with four consecutive points before adding another four following a Beaver timeout to build a commanding 22-13 advantage.
Pratt briefly interrupted the momentum with consecutive points, but Follis helped slam the door with two service aces during Barton's closing three-point run to secure the 25-15 opening-set victory.
Second Set: Barton claimed five of the opening six points to build a 5-1 lead, but Pratt battled back with a pair of three-point runs to pull within 10-9.
Following two Cougar points, the Beavers rattled off four straight to claim their first lead of the frame. Barton briefly pulled even before Pratt regained a 14-13 advantage, its final lead of the night.
The Cougars responded with a 7-1 surge to move ahead 20-15, but Pratt refused to go quietly. The Beavers scored five of the next six points to trim the deficit to 21-20 before Barton slammed the door with four unanswered points to secure the 25-20 victory and commanding two-set advantage.
Third Set: Barton seized control early with a five-point run to build an 8-2 advantage before answering two Pratt points with a 6-1 stretch to extend the margin to 14-5.
A Beaver timeout briefly turned the momentum, as Pratt claimed six of the next seven points to close within 15-11. The Cougars quickly regained control with consecutive points and, following a brief Pratt interruption, rattled off seven straight to double up the Beavers at 24-12 before closing out the sweep.