MCC VOLLEYBALL WINS AT HOME AGAINST HLOF

The MCC Rebel Volleyball team was at home Thursday night, two days after coming from two sets down, to beat the Red Rock Central Falcons. The Rebels played host to their Red Rock Conference rivals, the Coyotes of Heron Lake Okabena Fulda. The Rebels have never beaten the Coyotes. The Rebels did beat the Heron Lake Okabena Wildcats and the Fulda Raiders back in 2018 but Thursday night the Rebels got their first ever win over HLOF.

The Rebels and the Coyotes went back and forth in the first game. The Rebels led early, just to see the Coyotes pull ahead by as much as four points. The two teams never grabbed control of the game until late in the set, when the Rebels got some great serving from Kate Blankenship and Emmi Peltola. The Rebels would take the first set 25 to 23. The defense was strong both ways, but neither team established a consistent hitter. The second set saw the Coyotes build a lead. They controlled the game through the middle of the set to the very end. The Rebels struggled to put the Coyotes in poor positions and the Coyotes came through with a 25 to 19 win to tie at one game each.

The Rebels and the Coyotes played similar games on Thursday. The Rebels won game one because of some strong serving late in the game and they made slightly fewer mistakes than the Coyotes. In set 2 the Coyotes made fewer mistakes and they controlled the game, getting the win. In the 3rd set, the Rebels would control the game and it started at the net with key blocks from Peyton DeGreeff and Calleigh Doeden. Thea Schneider got some good looks and connected on several kills. In a game that didn’t have a large number of kills, her swings were key to establish the Rebel offense. The Rebels got the win 25 to 19 to go ahead 2 sets to 1. The fourth set MCC came out strong, getting some key aces. Schneider and Kelli Miller came up with a couple and Kate Blankenship helped the Rebels take the lead. There were several long rallies. The Rebels found a way to get the win. Whether it was a soft tip shot by Blankenship or an unlucky bounce off the tape by the Coyotes, MCC built a 24 to 19 lead and though the Coyotes made a late run, the Rebels got the win 25 to 23.

The Rebels coaching staff continues to talk to their team about consistency and that has shown over the last three games. MCC started the season losing their first two games to Canby and Lakeview, but the Rebels have won three in a row and the last two have been conference games. The Rebels were led by Thea Schneider who had 12 kills and Peyton DeGreeff added 10. Emmi Peltola led the Rebels with 31 digs while Schneider added 18. The Rebels are now 3-2 on the season, with the second week of the Red Rock Conference coming up. For MCC homecoming, the Rebels will play Tuesday in Mountain Lake and Thursday at home against HBC.