East Peoria, Ill. - There's nothing quite like the anticipation for the start of a postseason. Now, add on a team with the expectations of one like the seventh-ranked ICC Volleyball program (29-10), and that adrenalin is perhaps greater. After all, the program has made the National Tournament an impressive 32 times, including winning the National Championship in 2009. It's not just historically, either. The Cougars won the District "Central B" Tournament in 2022, and are back on home court for this year's Central B bracket. The action all gets going when the Cougars host John Wood in the District Semifinal on Saturday, November 4th, at 12:00 PM inside Ramsey Gym. 

Just because a statement is a cliche, doesn't mean it can't be true. ICC is playing quality volleyball at the right time. The Cougars have won nine consecutive matches, and are (21-3) in their last 24 matches. However, the postseason, often times refered to as the 'second season', provides ICC with an opportunity to balance the momentum that they have from their home stretch of the regular season whilst also hitting the reset button for postseason play. 

The Cougars have certainly had their own talented cast of characters that has propelled them to the position they find themselves in. For starters, the attacking front is paced by players like Emily Allison, Kaitlyn Baumann, Amber Brawley, Hannah Tellor, and Makenzie Pflederer, who make up the top five in kills per set at 2.66, 2.22, 1.52, 1.99, and 1.88 respectively. The attacking as a whole has hit above the .300 mark in three of the last five matches, topping out at .333 in the match at Jefferson on October 20th, which is also the season high. 

Conversely, the defensive side for the Cougars has held strong in limiting their opposition over this stretch. Only one ICC opponent has hit over .200 in the last five matches (Jefferson - .333). Among the sub-.200 matches are limiting the front rows of #10 Heartland (.098) and Lincoln Land (-.034) to sub-.100 marks. 

ICC has been able to have three players tally 90+ total blocks on the season, with Baumann (140 - 0.98 per set), Brawley (99 - 0.75 per set), and Tellor (97 - 0.67 per set) leading the charge. Conversely, Baumann's 140 total blocks are the 8th-best mark in the nation, and her 126 block assists are 4th best in the nation. 

When it comes to the service game, it hasn't been a matter of if Emily will lead the way - it's which Emily. Emily Allison (53 aces - 0.38 per set) and Emily Cronkhite (51 aces - 0.35 per set) lead that category. Cronkhite also holds the nation's third best mark in digs with 770 entering the tournament. 

The Cougars (#2 seed) will host #3 Heartland, #6 East Central Missouri, and #7 John Wood as part of the Central B district. Of note, two of the other three teams are within ICC's last five matches played (vs. #10 Heartland 10/18, @ John Wood 10/13). 

2023 DISTRICT "CENTRAL B" TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
All Matches Played at Lorene Ramsey Gym in East Peoria, IL
Tournament Will Be Held on Saturday, November 4th, 2023
All Matches Will be Streamed Live at THIS LINK
12:00 PM | #2 ICC COUGARS (29-10) vs. #7 John Wood Blazers (19-13)
2:00 PM | #3 Heartland Hawks (29-8) vs. #6 East Central Missouri Falcons (22-10)
4:00 PM | District Championship Match