West Plains, MO – For the first time since 2004, and just the second time in program history, the Indian Hills Volleyball team is headed to the semifinal round of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) DI Volleyball National Tournament. The Warriors secured two victories on the opening day Friday to advance.
Indian Hills, the No. 2 seed in the national tournament, opened up the day at 11:00 AM with a 3-0 sweep of No. 15 Monroe College (NY). In the quarterfinal nightcap, the Warriors took on No. 7 seed Trinity Valley Community College (TX). Indian Hills built a 2-0 lead through two sets before the Cardinals responded with back-to-back victories. In the end, it was the Warriors who prevailed in a thrilling fifth set to advance.
Indian Hills now advances to the semifinal round where the Warriors will take on No. 6 seed Miami Dade College (FL). The Warriors will square off with the six-time national champion Sharks at 6:30 PM Friday night from the West Plains Civic Center.
Making its first appearance at the national tournament since 2019, and fourth trip all-time, the Warriors rolled in the opening match vs. Monroe. Indian Hills took down the Mustangs by set scores of 25-16, 25-12, and 25-21, ending the nation's longest winning streak at 22 matches for Monroe.
The Warriors were led in the opening by freshman Kinga Michalska's (Szówsko, Poland/ZSSCHiO) nine kills. Hennesys Lalane (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic/Colegio Luis Munox Rivera) totaled 26 assists and five kills in the win for the Warriors.
Indian Hills put together one of its most dominant defensive performances of the year as the Warriors totaled 26 block assists and five solo stops in the win. Sophomore Erica Calderon Rosario (Santo Domingo/Dominican Republic/Salome Urena de Henriquez) posted three solo blocks and nine block assists while Jenna Vallée (Pornichet, France/Lycee Aristide Briand) added a solo stop and five assists for the nation's top blocking team.
With the win, the Warriors earned a spot in the quarterfinal round against a familiar foe in Trinity Valley, the nation's No. 9 ranked team in the final national poll and the No. 7 overall seed in the tournament. The two teams squared off earlier in the year, a 3-0 win for the Warriors on September 23 in Hutchinson, KS.
The opening set saw both sides trade points early and often. The Cardinals eventually built an 11-8 lead, but a 5-0 spurt from the Warriors forced a timeout for Trinity Valley with Indian Hills on top 13-11. An impressive kill from freshman Larissa Scatamburlo (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil/Colégio Liceu Franco-Brasileiro) and a series of blocks down the stretch carried Indian Hills to a 25-23 win.
The Warriors carried that momentum over in the second set and jumped out to a 5-0 lead. Trinity Valley responded with a six-point run of its own and eventually took a lead midway through the frame. Down 14-13, Indian Hills scored eight of the next nine points and pulled away down the stretch to win 25-17.
Warriors take set two!@IHCCAthletics leads Trinity Valley 2-0 in the quarterfinal round of the 2022 #NJCAAVB DI Championship.https://t.co/O3OqYVnfCr pic.twitter.com/eOxoCEqh0U
— NJCAA Network (@NJCAANetwork) November 18, 2022
Indian Hills found itself in a hole early in set three and were forced to play from behind. The Cardinals held off a valiant effort from the Warriors to take a 25-23 victory. A highly contested fourth set went to Trinity Valley after the Cardinals ran away down the stretch to take a 25-18 victory.
The decisive set saw Rosario put on a display of offensive and defensive prowess to help Indian Hills pull away late. A kill from the sophomore gave Indian Hills an 11-8 lead and forced Trinity Valley into a timeout. The Warriors finished off the set with four of the final five points to take the victory.
Michalska finished with a game-high 18 games for the Warriors while hitting .421 on the night. Vallee added 14 kills while Scatamburlo posted 11 finishers. Lalane posted 50 assists for her second-career 50-assist performance.
Freshman Sasha Vidal (Asunscion, Paraguay/Trinity School) was exceptional on the defensive front, totaling 37 digs in the win.
Sophomore Jarolin de los Santos (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic/Luis Munoz Rivera) blocked six total shots on the day and is now the all-time single season blocks leader in program history with 200. The sophomore is also the all-time career blocks leader for the Warriors with 435.
Friday's meeting will be the first-ever matchup between the two programs. The winner will advance to the NJCAA DI Volleyball National Championship at 7:30 PM Saturday night.
Looking for GoHillsTV coverage? Russ W. Ocker will be live on site and will provide an audio only broadcast via GoHillsTV Facebook for all Indian Hills matches throughout the tournament.
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WARRIORS WIN AGAIN! No. 2-rated @ihccvolleyball was pushed to the limit, but will advance with a thrilling five-set victory over No. 7-seed @TVCCsports at the @NJCAA Division I Volleyball Tournament in West Plains, MO, 25-23, 25-17, 23-25, 17-25 and 15-9. pic.twitter.com/hN1XNGD2kP
— IHCC Athletics (@IHCCAthletics) November 18, 2022
