SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb. -  Whenever Western Nebraska Community College and Eastern Wyoming College hook up for any competition, the one thing that is guaranteed is an intense battle.
Tuesday night at Cougar Palace, the Cougars pounded down 55 kills and hit .209 for the match in earning a five-set thriller over the Lancers 25-17, 25-27, 25-21, 20-25, 25-4 to improve to 12-18 overall. EWC drops to 10-22 on the season.
Nadiyyah Northern, the sophomore middle hitter from Arizona, tallied 12 kills on the night while hitting .562. Northern said it was a battle and her team played well to get the win over a scrappy EWC squad.
“I think we just decided to play together and play aggressive because the other team was in the same shoes as us,” Northern said. “There were also fighting and we were fighting and you had to get momentum and the ball was in our court because it was a home game and we had to protect Cougar Palace.”
The entire match was a drag-down battle with no one giving up and it showed in the stats and on the scoreboard.
A big key in the win was the Cougars blocking at crucial times. Northern said when they can block, they can get momentum swung to their side.
“I think in the most part our block was pretty good at closing,” she said. “We also had a few blocks that gave us momentum because when we get a block at a key point or play, it makes everyone get more enthusiasm.”
The difference came in the fifth set, but before that, it was a back and forth grudge match and the statistics show that. WNCC finished with 55 kills to EWC’s 52. Kyana Gabriel led WNCC with 13 followed by Northern with 13, Keira Zelada with nine, and Anika Davison with eight. EWC was led by Una Stepic with 15 and Amarie Huntsman with 14.
Both teams had 67 digs in the match. Alex Gonzalez-Orozco had 21 for WNCC followed by Gabriel with 14 and Natalia Nowak with 11. EWC was led by Olive Osmera with 20 and Savannah Kirkbride with 13.
As for blocking, WNCC had seven solo blocks and six assist blocks compared to five solos and six assist blocks for EWC. Maria Niedzwiecka led WNCC with four solos and three assist blocks while Alana Asante led the Lancers with four solos and two assist.
EWC finished with 50 set assists to 48 for WNCC. Lola Hughes had 18 assists for the Lancers while Nowak had 44 for WNCC.
The Cougars also had seven ace serves to five for EWC. As for points, Nowak had 10 service points for the Cougars while Gonzales-Orosco had nine, Emma Hergenreder and Gabriel each with seven, and Reese Fleck with five. EWC was led by Huntsman and Huges each had seven points.
Errors was the difference in the contest. EWC had 16 missed serves and 27 hitting errors while WNCC had 12 missed serves and just 23 hitting errors.
The first set saw WNCC lead from start to finish. WNCC built a 16-9 lead only to watch EWC make it a 19-16 contest. WNCC came back as Dani Cruz served two points for a 23-16 lead and then Niedzwiecka finished off the set with a point and the 25-17 win.
The second set saw WNCC run to a 9-5 lead behind four service points from Eli Braithwaite and led 14-6 on two Gonzalez-Orosco points. EWC came storming back, outscoring the Cougars 11-2 to lead 17-16. EWC led 20-17 on two Clara Hayhanen points. WNCC’s Zelada stopped the run with a kill and then Hergenreder put WNCC up 21-20. Things went back and forth and Huntsman served the final two points for the Lancers for the 27-25 win.
The third set was anyone’s game and neither team had more than a 2-point lead. EWC led 15-14 after two Una Stepic points. WNCC came back to lead 20-17 and won the third set 25-21 on a Gabriel service point and Davison kill.
The fourth set was identical to the third. EWC led 10-9 before WNCC took a 13-10 lead on three Fleck points. EWC came back to lead 16-14 on three Hughes points and led 21-16. WNCC made it a 21-19 lead, but the Lances won the fourth 25-20 to force a fifth set.
The fifth set was all Cougars as Nowak started things with four points and the Cougars led 7-2. Hergenreder had two points for a 10-3 lead and the Cougars never looked back as Northern got the final kill for a point and the match.
EWC will next be in action on Friday when they host Central Wyoming.
The Cougars will wrap up their home portion of the regular season with matches on Thursday and Friday, both at 6 p.m. WNCC will entertain Otero on Thursday in Breast Cancer Awareness Night, while on Friday Trinidad State comes to Cougar Palace for sophomore recognition night.
“I think this team can be exceptional when we play together,” Northern said. “When we play together, I think we are fun to watch because we are having fun. So, I think this team has a lot of potential.”