Volleyball has season come to an end with loss in district tournament

In what was an up and down season for the Cowley College volleyball team, the Lady Tigers had their season come to an end with a 13-25, 25-22, 26-28, 23-25 loss to Neosho County in the first round of the District B Tournament played Friday in Highland, KS. 

"Our slow start gave Neosho extra momentum in the match," Cowley head coach Steven Gream said.

After evening the match at a set apiece, Cowley was one point away from winning the third set before losing 28-26. Then, in set four, Cowley rallied from a 20-12 deficit to pull within 24-23 before losing 25-23.

"We just could not quite get the big swing we needed," Gream said. "This was kind of the story of our year, we would get close but could not get over the top."

Sophomore Iva Halacheva and Maddy Pitts led Cowley with 12 and nine kills, respectively, but both struggled with their hitting percentages. Halacheva finished with a double-double as she added a team-high 14 digs. Ranking third all-time in career kills, Halacheva is expected to return to the team for an additional season and make a run at the school-record for kills.

Cowley finishes the season with a record of 16-11.

Neosho (16-8) would go on to defeat Highland in the championship match and advances to compete at the NJCAA Division II National Championship April 13-15 in Cedar Rapids, IA.

Cowley will say goodbye to sophomores Juju Eaton, Cora Vineyard, Caitie Lockett, and Keely Solida, who were all instrumental players for the Tigers during their two years at the school.

"They all improved this year and will be missed," Gream said.

Macy Shreffler (259 kills), Maddy Pitts (210 kills), Gracie Story (1,043 assists), and Erin Thompson (433 digs) highlight the list of freshmen that will join Halacheva with a chance to return next season.

"We do not have much of an off-season," Gream said. "We will work on the things we know we need to improve on and use what we learned this season to our advantage next year."