NO. 2 WARRIORS DROP THRILLER TO NO. 18 WEST PLAINS
Hillsboro, MO – No. 2 Indian Hills Volleyball saw its 19-match winning streak snapped on Friday afternoon as the Warriors fell in a five-set thriller to No. 18 Missouri State-West Plains University. The Warriors fall to 26-2 on the year after dropping the opening match of the annual Iowa-Missouri Challenge.
The loss is just the second of the year for the Warriors, and first since August 27. Indian Hills dropped the opening two sets 25-20 and 25-13 to the Grizzlies, ranked 18th in the latest National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) DI Volleyball poll. The Warriors stormed back to take the next two sets, 25-18, 25-19 before MSU-WP outlasted Indian Hills 15-9 in the final frame.
The Warriors are now 7-2 vs. nationally ranked opponents, and 12-2 vs. teams that have appeared in the national rankings at some point throughout the year. Indian Hills suffered its first five-set loss of the year in seven matches.
The 19-match winning streak is the third-longest streak in school history, only behind 2016’s 27-match streak and 2004’s 23-match streak.
Freshman Kinga Michalska (Szówsko, Poland/ZSSCHiO) recorded a career-high 19 kills to lead the Warriors. Michalska’s biggest frame of the night came in the fourth set with six kills with just one error to help the Warriors force a fifth and deciding set. Michalska added a pair of kills in the fifth set, but the Warriors fell short against the Grizzlies.
Sophomore Jenna Vallée (Pornichet, France/Lycee Aristide Briand) added nine kills and a season-high 18 digs for the Warriors. Sasha Vidal (Asunción, Paraguay/Trinity School) tallied a career-high four service aces and added 20 digs.
Sophomore Hennesys Lalane (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic/Colegio Luis Munox Rivera) surpassed the 1,000-assist mark for the second-time in her career after recording 48 assists in the match, tied for her third-most of the year. Lalane also posted a season-high 21 digs to lead the defensive charge for Indian Hills.
The Warriors wrap up play at the Iowa-Missouri Challenge, hosted by Jefferson College (MO) on Saturday with a pair of matches. Indian Hills will take on No. 16 Mineral Area College (MO) at 1:00 PM before its final match against Jefferson at 7:00 PM.
