Knights drop two games to finish MCC Labor Day Tournament

McCook, Neb. – North Platte Community College volleyball wrapped up the McCook Community College Labor Day Tournament with a pair of 3-1 losses on Saturday.

"I thought we served well and played some scrappy defense," said head coach Alexa McCall. "We saw some good competition, but we must take the next step and come out on top in those situations."

Iowa Western 3 North Platte 1

Jaelyn Dicke led the way with 18 kills, 15 digs and one ace in the opening game on Saturday. Nya Lual added 11 kills, while Aubrey Grant tallied 27 set assists against the Reivers.

The Reivers came out swinging early, owning a 7-2 lead in the opening set. A Dicke kill capped off a 3-1 rally to bring the Knights within three, but Iowa Western never relinquished their hold and took the set 25-20.

Reivers kept their momentum alive in the second set jumping out to a 16-7 advantage, which forced North Platte to take a timeout. Out of the break, Iowa Western continued to add to their lead until a kill from Lual broke the momentum. The Reivers were unfazed and went on to claim the second set.

Knights rebounded in the third set to take a commanding 6-2 advantage on back-to-back kills by Dicke. North Platte never relinquished their lead throughout the set, as Iowa Western continued to fire shots from their outside hitters. The defense was up to the task which helped North Platte take the set 25-19.

Teams exchanged rallies throughout set four. Iowa Western constructed a five-point lead early in the set only to have the Knights knot the game up at 16-16. The battle raged on until the Reivers put together a 3-0 rally, which helped them put the finishing touches on the match.

Hutchinson 3 North Platte 1

Dicke was the lone Knights player in double digits in kills as she finished the match with 12. EmiLee Walnofer led the way defensively with 21 digs against the Blue Dragons.

The Blue Dragons came out strong and took the opening two sets. Hutchinson led from start to finish in the opening set despite a North Platte rally that cut the margin to 12-10. Hutchinson answered with a short rally which carried them to a 25-15 opening set win.

In the second set, the Knights jumped out to a 5-3 lead on an attacking error by the Blue Dragons. Hutchinson battled back to knot the game up at 10-10, before a 4-1 rally helped the Blue Dragons steal the momentum. North Platte was not done and cut the deficit to one on an ace by Grant. Hutchinson responded with a long rally to earn the 25-21 set win.

North Platte trailed early in the third set but battled to take the lead after three straight attacking errors. Hutchinson answered with a short rally to knot the game up at 20-20, before the Knights went on a 5-1 run to close out the set.

The Knights went back and forth with the Blue Dragons in the fourth, but a four-point rally helped Hutchinson pull away midway through the set. Trailing 22-16, Dicke attempted to energize the Knights offense with a kill, but three straight points helped Hutchinson close out the match.

Knights return to the road on Tuesday to take on Northeastern Junior College. First serve is set for 7 p.m. inside the Bank of Colorado Event Center in Sterling, Colo.