Johnston Records Two Triple-Doubles as DMACC Falls to Ranked Opponents

CEDAR RAPIDS — Ramsey Johnston reached double figures in kills, assists and digs in both matches, but the DMACC volleyball team dropped two four-set decisions against top-six opponents Sept. 12 at the Kirkwood Tournament.

The Bears, ranked 15th in the National Junior College Athletic Association’s Division II poll, lost 3-1 to third-ranked Johnson County Community College and 3-1 to sixth-ranked Heartland Community College. The losses dropped DMACC to 5-6 overall.

Johnston, a sophomore from Chaska, Minnesota, finished the tournament with 27 kills, 43 assists and 30 digs.

Against Johnson County, sophomore Brooklyn Lyftogt of Van Meter led DMACC with 14 kills. She committed just two hitting errors on 43 attacks for a .279 hitting percentage.

Johnston added 13 kills, 23 assists and 14 digs, hitting .323 with three errors on 31 attacks. Freshman Sydney Blackmore of Holstein contributed 11 kills and hit .290.

The Bears finished with 51 kills and a .229 hitting percentage against Johnson County.

Saige De Jong, a sophomore from Pella, supplied 20 assists. Sophomore Indy Johnson of Clarion led the defense with 27 digs and served two aces. Freshman Avery Hasleiet of Center Point also recorded two aces.

Sophomore Kathryn Lukkarinen of Macomb, Illinois, matched Johnston with 14 digs. Hasleiet and sophomore Alli Sheldahl of Hubbard each contributed two block assists.

DMACC opened its match against Heartland with a 25-20 victory in the first set. Heartland responded by taking the next three sets, 25-22, 25-19 and 25-19.

Johnston again led the Bears’ offense, collecting 14 kills while adding 20 assists, 16 digs and four blocks. She hit .235 on 34 attacks.

Blackmore joined Johnston in double figures with 10 kills. She committed only one hitting error on 28 attacks, finishing with a .321 hitting percentage.

DMACC totaled 42 kills and hit .207 against Heartland.

De Jong recorded a double-double with 13 assists and 13 digs. Johnson finished with a team-high 20 digs and three service aces, while Lukkarinen added 11 digs.

Across the two matches, Johnson collected 47 digs and five aces. Blackmore contributed 21 kills, and De Jong finished with 33 assists.

The Bears are scheduled to return to Iowa Community College Athletic Conference play Sept. 16 against Northwest Iowa Community College in Sheldon.

DMACC enters that matchup tied for fourth in the conference at 3-1. Northwest Iowa is 1-7 overall and 0-4 in ICCAC play.