Rockford, Ill. - Familiar opponents were on the horizon for the ICC Volleyball team (26-10, 9-1) at the Rock Valley Tournament this weekend. Of their four scheduled matches, three were against teams they either already had played this season or are at least familiar with: Spoon River, Harper, and Rock Valley.
The Cougars were able to hold their first opponent, the Lancers of Lake County, shy of 20 points in their 18th sweep of the season, 3-0. The closest the Lancers got was a 25-18 second set. It was a quick turnaround, as ICC was not schedule to play the Lancers until a late switch prior to the tournament.
Lacy Pilgrim led the way in the opener, topping or being close to topping the leaderboard in digs, assists, and aces.
ICC's second match on Friday saw them take on in-region foe Spoon River in a match that doesn't count towards the region record. It was a repeat of their late-September meeting inside Ramsey Gym, as the Cougars rolled to another Spoon River sweep. Interestingly, the two matches on Friday had identical set scores: 25-13, 25-18, and 25-17 - in that order for both matches.
Saturday was filled with ranked opponents for ICC, with D3 #7 Harper and D3 #1 Rock Valley on the schedule. The Cougars and Harper went the five-set distance in just the third match of the season, but it was a much different story in Rockford on Saturday, with ICC rolling to a three set sweep, 25-14, 25-11, and a close third set at 25-21.
Hope Allen led in both digs and aces in the match.
It would turn out to be a five-set marathon against tournament hosts Rock Valley. The Cougars got off to a dominant start, taking the first set by a 13-point spread, 25-12. Then the Golden Eagles flipped it around and took the next two sets by three and eight points, respectively. With ICC on the brink, the Cougars took control in the ending sets, taking the fourth by 25-15 and the winner-take-all fifth by a 15-7 score. It was D3 #1 Rock Valley's seventh loss of the season, but just their second time being defeated at home.
Gracie Schultz had a quality Saturday, collecting five blocks in each match for a total of 10 on the day. The freshman also combined for 28 kills on Friday, evenly splitting it with 14 each against Lake County and Spoon River. Front row pairing
Hannah Alvey combined for 41 kills on Saturday, tallying 15 against Harper and 26 against Rock Valley.
The four matches won this weekend equal out to a nine-match winning streak, with the Cougars not having lost since getting swept at Parkland on October 6th.
ICC will have a majority of the week off from competition before traveling to Hillsboro, Missouri to participate in the Jefferson College Invitational on Friday and Saturday, October 22nd and 23rd. Pairings/times/etc. will be released to the schedule as soon as they become available.
ICC Statistical Leaders vs. Lake County
Cougars won, 3-0 (25-13, 25-18, 25-17)
Kills |
Gracie Schultz (14)
Digs |
Hannah Alvey (12),
Lacy Pilgrim (11)
Assists |
Lacy Pilgrim (19)
Aces |
Lacy Pilgrim (3)
Blocks |
Ashlyn Mool (5)
ICC Statistical Leaders vs. Spoon River
Cougars won, 3-0 (25-13, 25-18, 25-17)
Kills |
Gracie Schultz (14)
Digs |
Hope Allen (17),
Brynn Rossman (12)
Assists |
Lacy Pilgrim (22),
Brooke Ely (13)
Aces |
Hannah Alvey (2),
Brooke Ely (2)
Blocks |
Ashlyn Mool (7),
Gracie Schultz (4)
ICC Statistical Leaders vs. D3 #7 Harper
Cougars won, 3-0 (25-14, 25-11, 25-21)
Kills |
Hannah Alvey (15)
Digs |
Hope Allen (18)
Assists |
Lacy Pilgrim (17)
Aces |
Brynn Rossman (2),
Hope Allen (2)
Blocks |
Gracie Schultz (5),
Ashlyn Mool (4),
Hannah Alvey (4)
ICC Statistical Leaders vs. D3 #1 Rock Valley
Cougars won, 3-2 (25-12, 22-25, 17-25, 25-15, 15-7)
Kills |
Hannah Alvey (26),
Gracie Schultz (12)
Digs |
Hope Allen (21),
Brynn Rossman (11),
Hannah Alvey (11),
Lacy Pilgrim (10)
Assists |
Lacy Pilgrim (24),
Brooke Ely (16)
Aces |
Hope Allen (4),
Brooke Ely (2)
Blocks |
Gracie Schultz (5)
Next Up:
ICC Cougars (26-10, 9-1)
vs. Jefferson College Invitational
Hillsboro, Missouri
October 22nd & 23rd
Live Coverage / Further Details TBA
