WNCC volleyball sweeps Trinidad,runs record to 36-1

For more photos of the match, visit the Cougar Photo Album at wncccougars.albumpost.com

Western Nebraska Community College used strong serving in derailing Trinidad State Junior College in straight games 30-11, 30-11, 30-24 Saturday afternoon at Cougar Palace.

The Cougars put three players in double-digit scoring en route to their 27^th straight win. Stacie Meisner led the attack with 18 points, including 7-straight in the first game and eight straight in the third game, followed by Daphine Da Silva with 11 and Jennifer Eichler with 10.

WNCC also received eight points and three aces from Soriana Pacheco, seven points and three aces from Fatima Balza, and three aces from Meisner in the win.

“We had a lot or runs and that is how you get those serving points is not allowing the other team to sideout,” WNCC coach Chris Green said. “Stacie served the ball well tonight and she has been serving well lately. We really need her to keep doing that when we play stiffer competition.”

What pleased Green the most, though, was how his team rebounded from a so-so performance Friday against Otero Junior College.

“We had less errors [then last night]. We had only four hitting errors in the entire match, which is pretty amazing,” Green said. “We still had 10 serving errors, but that was less then last night. Those two parts of the game we played better. I also think defensively we had some nice digs.”

In deed WNCC looked like the Cougars of old, with a workmanlike effort that saw WNCC pull away in the first and second games. And, it was their serving and defense that paved the way.

WNCC held a slim 6-5 lead in the opening game until a Trinidad State missed served and Meisner’s 7-point service run opened up the contest to 14-5. WNCC continued serving tough as Balza served up four straight points and then Pacheco had five points, including two aces, for a 28-9 lead.

Game two was just as stellar for the Cougars. Da Silva started the Cougars off with a 3-0 lead, before both teams traded rotations one after the other. That was until Eichler stepped to the service line. The 6-foot left-handed hitter served nine straight points to put WNCC up 25-9. Balza finished of the Trojans with two service points, including an ace on the final point.

Meisner and Da Silva combined to give the Cougars a 13-1 lead to start the third game. That was when Trinidad’s Amanda Gardner decided to change the complexion of the game with four service points to slice the lead to 13-6.

Trinidad State continued hanging around in the third game cutting the lead to seven, 25-19, on a Loren Gonzales point. A Balza kill and two Kendra Schauermann service points changed things in a hurry, giving WNCC a 28-19 lead before the Cougars won 30-24.

Eichler continued to put up all-American numbers. Besides her 10 points, she also finished with three blocks and eight kills. Aida Bauza finished the game with seven kills, while Balza had five kills and two blocks.

Also for WNCC, Da Silva had four kills and four digs; Chelsea Lyles had three kills, three blocks and two digs; Pacheco had 13 set assists, two blocks and four digs; Cassie Vrooman had seven set assists; Schauermann had five points and nine digs; and Meisner had three set assists and seven digs.

WNCC, 36-1, will have one day off before returning to action Monday and Tuesday when they host Eastern Wyoming College on Monday and No. 17 Northeastern Junior College on Tuesday. Both have 7 p.m. start times.

“I think Eastern Wyoming has improved a lot since we saw them last and NJC is talented and definitely has a good team, which we will be challenged with,” Green said. “Hopefully we can go into those two matches on a positive note after today’s match, especially the first two games that we played pretty well.”

Both nights will have special events. Monday’s contest will follow the high school volleyball match between Leyton and Lingle-Ft. Laramie. Junior Varsity action for that high school match begins at 4 p.m. with varsity action slated for 5 p.m.

Then, on Tuesday, the Cougars will have “Black Out Night” along with Breast Cancer Awareness Night. The team is asking fans to wear black, while breast cancer survivors can call the college at 635-6151 for free tickets to the match.