Lady Yotes Defeated by Rocky in Volleyball Opening Round
CALDWELL, Idaho – Yang Yang recorded a rare triple-double, leading Rocky Mountain to a thrilling five-set victory over The College of Idaho in the NAIA Volleyball National Championships Opening Round in the J.A. Albertson Activities Center.
Yang had 20 kills, 16 digs, and 10 blocks, helping the No. 25 ranked Bears (25-6) earn a 25-23, 25-21, 18-25, 19-25, 15-7 victory – earning a trip to the Final Site of the NAIA National Championships.
After the No. 21 ranked Yotes (18-10) rallied to with wins in Set 3 and Set 4 to force the decisive fifth set, Rocky got a pair of BrieAnna Geck kills in a 7-3 surge to open the period, then got two Tori Bertsch blocks in a four-point run to build a 12-6 lead. The Bears clinched their first-ever Opening Round win on a Yang kill off a C of I overpass.
C of I sprinted out of the gate in Set 1, as Emily Ottinger had four kills and both Kylee Nawahine and Liz Myers each added three, as the Yotes led 18-9. The Bears responded, using an 11-2 spurt – including four kills from Ahlea Billis, to even the set at 20-20. After a pair of C of I points gave the hosts a 22-20 lead, RMC scored four straight, including a Yang stuff block, with Yang hammering home a kill to give the visitors the improbable set win.
Rocky never trailed in Set 2, getting two kills each from Yang and Billis in a 9-2 run to take a 16-8 lead – holding off a late C of I rally.
The Yotes got into system in Set 3, as Nawahine recorded six kills and Ottinger added five more, as C of I built a 14-7 lead and used a late 6-1 run to earn the set win. C of I dominated Set 4, racing out to a 6-1 lead on a Nawahine ace – scoring 21 of 25 points on kills to force the fifth set.
Billis had 14 kills and 11 digs for RMC, with Bertsch recording 50 assists and five blocks and Brooke Myers leading the Bears with 18 digs. The visitors had 17 team blocks in the victory.
Ottinger had 20 kills to lead C of I, with Nawahine recording a season-high 17 kills and 18 digs in her final collegiate match. Senior Sofia Anxo had 13 kills and 13 digs and fellow senior Liz Myers had 12 kills and a team-high four blocks. Sierra Porter had 64 assists and 13 digs, senior Janel Porter had 23 digs, with Cheyan Coburn adding 14 digs.