Facing a two-set deficit and fighting off four match points, the No. 17 ranked Barton Community College volleyball team rallied Wednesday evening for a dramatic five-set road victory at Cloud County Community College (19-25, 21-25, 30-28, 25-19, 15-10).
After dropping the opening two frames, the Cougars survived a 30-28 third-set thriller before taking control of the final two sets to complete the reverse sweep and secure their fourth straight victory in Concordia.
The victory improves Barton to 7-2 in KJCCC play and 17-7 overall while Cloud County slips to 2-6 in conference action and 8-9 on the season. The Cougars return home Saturday for a 1:00 p.m. showdown against No. 9 Colby Community College at Fleske Fieldhouse.
By the Numbers
Despite dropping the opening two sets, Barton held the offensive advantage throughout much of the night, outhitting Cloud County .240 to .155 while producing a 66-59 edge in kills. The Cougars posted the better attack percentage in each of the final four frames, highlighted by a match-best .364 in the pivotal third set, before limiting the Thunderbirds to .080 and .095 attacks in the final two sets.
Kiera Loe powered the comeback with a career-high 24 kills on .333 hitting, marking her fourth 20-plus kill performance of the season and 15th double-digit outing in 17 matches. The sophomore added 10 digs for her second double-double as a Cougar and fifth of her career while accounting for a team-leading 25 points. Mariam Urazbakhtina also established a new career high with 12 kills on .265 hitting.
Brylynn Wicker contributed nine kills while matching her career high with six blocks. Amanda Riepe added eight kills and nine digs, while Irmak Navruz provided six kills, two service aces and a block assist. Paola Batista made the most of her opportunities, putting down four kills without an error on 13 swings for a .308 attack while adding a solo block and block assist.
Directing the offense, Mileah Neal distributed 41 assists, marking the second time this season she has reached 40 assists in just four sets of action. Neal also established a career high with four blocks while adding two kills. Defensively, Jaden Katsis led the Cougars with 15 digs, followed by Loe's 10, while Hotone Tarui contributed six digs and four assists.
Set-by-Set Recap
First Set: Barton held its lone lead at 2-1 before Cloud County seized control with four straight points. Tied for the final time at five, the Thunderbirds used a 6-1 stretch to create separation before another five-point run extended the margin to eight at 17-9. Cloud County later stretched the advantage to nine at 21-12 before Barton mounted a late charge with four straight points to trim the deficit to five. The Thunderbirds held off the rally, however, securing the 25-19 opening-set victory.
Second Set: Cloud County carried the momentum into the second frame, building a 6-3 advantage before Barton rattled off six straight points to surge ahead 9-6. After the teams exchanged points, the Thunderbirds responded with a 5-1 stretch to regain the lead at 12-11. Barton briefly moved back in front with consecutive points, but Cloud County answered with six straight to build an 18-13 advantage. The Cougars twice trimmed the deficit to four, but the Thunderbirds countered with a 4-1 stretch to keep Barton at bay. The Cougars mounted one final push, scoring five straight to pull within 23-21, but Cloud County claimed the final two points for the 25-21 victory and put Barton on their heels of a two-set deficit.
Third Set: For the third straight frame, Cloud County jumped out quickly, using four consecutive points to establish an early 7-3 advantage. Still trailing by four later in the set, Barton erupted for eight unanswered points to seize control and seemingly turn the momentum. The Thunderbirds had other ideas, answering with five straight to regain a 21-20 lead.
Trading points down the stretch, Barton reclaimed the advantage with two straight before reaching set point at 24-23. Following a timeout, Cloud County answered with consecutive points to earn its first match point, but the Cougars refused to surrender.
Needing every bit of their match-best .364 attack to stave off the sweep, the Cougars fought off four Cloud County match points at 25-24, 26-25, 27-26 and 28-27 before closing with three straight points, capped by a combined block from Navruz and Wicker, to claim the dramatic 30-28 victory.
Fourth Set: The teams traded points throughout the early stages before Barton strung together three straight to take the lead for good at 12-9. A four-point run midway through the frame extended the margin to seven, with Cloud County unable to trim the deficit below three the rest of the way. Fueled by Loe's 11 kills among Barton's 15 in the set, including three of the Cougars' final five points, Barton pulled away for the 25-19 victory to force a deciding fifth frame.
Fifth Set: Barton struck first with the opening two points before Cloud County answered with five of the next six to grab a 6-4 edge. The Cougars countered with three straight kills from Urazbakhtina to reclaim the lead, but the Thunderbirds responded with consecutive points to regain what would be their final advantage at 8-7.
A Cloud County service error sparked Barton's decisive six-point surge, highlighted by consecutive blocks from Wicker and Neal before kills by Wicker and Loe pushed the Cougars ahead 13-8. The teams traded points from there before Loe delivered her 24th kill of the night to complete the 15-10 victory and remarkable reverse sweep.