KCC volleyball adds two more wins at home

By Coach Tina Turn
KCC vs. Stephen-Argyle Central
It’s always a good crowd for the Stephen-Argyle Central versus KCC rivalry games, and the fans packed the bleachers to see KCC capture their 15th win of the season.
In set one, the Bearcats spread out the offensive attack, making it very hard for the Storm defense to get the ball in system. Marlee Turn and McKenna Peterson led with four kills each, followed by Cheyanne Scalese and Morgan Olson with three each, and setter Gracie Whitlock with two. Defensively, libero Shelby Pankratz picked up a trey of digs while Olson and Josie Steen each scored on an ace. On a Morgan Olson kill from the outside, the Cats took set one 25-15.
Behind the serving of Pankratz, KCC jumped to an early 6-1 lead. It was overall tough serving in the set by the Bearcats, recording six aces that kept the Storm at bay. Turn swung for eight kills in the set, and Olson had two. KCC won the second set 25-14.
KCC allowed the Storm a run after a few struggles on serve receive, but that was after Peterson served nine in a row to help her team to a big lead. Other than those few poor passes, the Bearcats played a third solid set. Whitlock and Scalese teamed up for the only block of the night, and it was also Scalese that put point 25 on the board to help her team to a 25-17 win.
A conference win is always nice, and beating a rival like the Storm at home is extra fun. There was good energy in the gym, and even though it was extremely hot, the girls played with fire and consistency. Our serve receive has really focused in the last half a dozen games, and because we are passing so much better, everything clicks when we are in system. We are pleased to maintain our undefeated record, which now moves to 15-0, but we recognize we have lots of work ahead of us still.
KCC vs. Red Lake Falls
Lancaster was the host to the Eagles of Red Lake Falls in volleyball action on Thursday, Sept. 19. In set one, the Eagles hung with the Bearcats for a while as KCC didn’t pass as well as usual on serve receive right out of the gate. Once the passers found a rhythm, the hitters followed suit, and the team journeyed to a set one 25-13 win.
KCC missed two serves in set two but recorded four aces. The Bearcats kept the Eagles out of system, forcing them to commit errors. Set two ended in favor of the Cats 25-8.
In the final set, the Bearcats struggled for a bit on serve receive again, but they served well. At the net, both McKenna Peterson and Cheyanne Scalese defended solidly with solo blocks each.
The Bearcats earned a game-high 19 of their 25 points to get their 16th win of the season 25-14.
Seniors Marlee Turn and Morgan Olson led the offense with 17 kills and 8 kills respectively. Three other players added 3 kills each to make for a balanced attack: Gracie Whitlock, McKenna Peterson, and Cheyanne Scalese.
Defensively, Turn, Peterson, and Scalese each had a block, while senior libero Shelby Pankratz and Turn each had 6 digs, followed by Olson and Peterson with four each.
We served 92 percent and recorded 11 aces, but our serve receive passing was about the lowest it has been all season, so we need to be sure we are focused in on that when we play tough competition at Burnsville.