No. 4-ranked Lady Tigers knock off ninth-ranked Neosho to remain unbeaten

The wins keep on coming for the unbeaten Cowley College volleyball team. The No. 4-ranked Lady Tigers have yet to drop a set after its 25-15, 25-23, 25-17 win at ninth-ranked Neosho County Wednesday in Chanute, KS.

After losing two of three matchups with Neosho a season ago, the Lady Tigers raced out to a 15-5 lead in set one and never looked back in the 25-15 win.

"Our sophomores remembered what happened last season and came prepared to play," Cowley head coach Steven Gream said.

 In set two, Cowley found themselves trailing 21-17 before rallying for the 25-23 win.

"They had us on our heels a bit, but it was good to be tested," Gream said. "We did a good job of carrying that momentum into the third set."

With the third set tied at 8-8, Cowley used an 11-4 run to pull away for the win of the match.

The victory improves Cowley's record to 9-0 overall and 2-0 in the Jayhawk Conference Eastern Division, while Neosho falls to 1-1 on the season.

Sophomore Iva Halacheva once again led the way with 15 kills.

"Despite being double blocked, Iva still found a way to get the point," Gream said.

Freshman Rachele Tessari also played well as she finished with nine kills and eight digs.

"Rachele set the tone for us and was aggressive from the first serve," Gream said.

Sophomore libero Erin Thompson added a team-high 10 digs, while freshman Rossana Papa chipped in with 30 assists and four of Cowley's 12 service aces.

"We pressured Neosho with our serve and attack," Gream said.

Cowley will have some time off before playing at Rose State College Monday at 6 p.m. in Midwest City, OK.

"A little break will be good for us and allow us to fine tune some things before playing Rose State and Allen next week," Gream said.