Greenwood, 3-0 The Hornets ….
Greenwood, 3-0
The Hornets picked up their third conference win by sweeping the Greenwood Indians in straight sets on the road last Thursday, winning 25-16, 25-16 and 25-15.
While Greenwood opened the first set with a small 3-1 lead, the Hornets went on to score five straight points to push ahead. Colby then went on to outscore the Indians 7-3, with a kill from Daelyn Rieck pushing their lead out to 13-7.
The home team mounted a comeback, nearly tying the game at 13-12, but after a timeout from the Hornets, the visitors dominated the rest of the set. A back row kill from Tori Underwood started a streak of 10 unanswered points for Colby, a stretch that allowed them to take a comfortable 25-16 win.
A kill from Brynn Lieders ignited a 6-0 run early for the Hornets in set number two. A kill from Lydia Decker broke the 4-4 tie and an ace courtesy of Underwood on the next serve helped drive the Hornets away from Greenwood. Much like in the first set, the Indians made a comeback, but could not quite tie the game, getting as close as 10-9 before the Colby squad began to pull away again.
Another 6-0 stretch for the Hornets gave them a seven-point lead in the midgame and it was this advantage that Colby was able to ride to their second set victory. Decker put the game away for the Hornets, pushing the ball through the blockers fingertips for the final point.
A back and forth opening to the third set turned into an eventual rout for Colby. Nursing a small 12-11 advantage, a hit from Harrison Schmitt found the floor in the middle of the Greenwood defense and kicked off a 13-4 run that would allow the Hornets to take the final set with a 10-point cushion.
Much of the success Colby found during their runs came from the service line. The Hornets amassed 20 aces in just three sets, with Rieck leading the way with five, Underwood and Josie Higley adding four each, Hannah Trush putting up three and Dakota Hoeper and Savana Thomsen getting two apiece. Lieders, Decker and Rieck all had five kills in the match and Underwood led the defensive effort with 13 digs.
