Three days after completing a reverse sweep on the road, the No. 17-ranked Barton Community College volleyball team found itself on the opposite end Saturday afternoon, surrendering a two-set advantage in a heartbreaking five-set loss to No. 9 Colby Community College at Fleske Fieldhouse.
Barton controlled the opening two frames 25-15 and 25-17 before Colby turned the tables with a 25-19 third-set victory. The Trojans then fought off a Barton match point in a dramatic 31-29 fourth set before erasing a late three-point deficit in the deciding frame to complete the reverse sweep 15-13.
The loss drops Barton to 7-3 in KJCCC play and 17-8 overall while Colby improves to 10-1 in conference action and 19-4 on the season.
Barton looks to rebound Monday at 6:00 p.m. when the Cougars host Cloud County Community College, the same Thunderbird squad they rallied past Wednesday after fighting off four match points to complete a reverse sweep of their own.
By the Numbers
Barton finished with 56 kills on .224 hitting, highlighted by a blistering .440 attack in the opening set with 13 kills against just two errors on 25 swings. The Cougars totaled nine service aces and 61 digs, but 20 attack errors and 13 service errors proved costly in the five-set battle.
Kiera Loe paced the Barton attack with 20 kills, marking her fifth 20-kill performance of the season and second straight following Wednesday’s career-high 24 at Cloud County. The sophomore narrowly missed another double-double with nine digs while adding a solo block.
Irmak Navruz delivered a career-best performance across the board, establishing new highs with 10 kills, five service aces and six digs. The five aces were particularly noteworthy after entering the contest with just two on the season. Mariam Urazbakhtina continued her recent offensive surge, matching her career high with 12 kills on .360 hitting for the second straight match and reaching at least 11 kills for the third time in four outings.
Reigning KJCCC Setter of the Week Mileah Neal distributed a career-high 47 assists while adding two kills and four digs. Defensively, reigning KJCCC and NJCAA Division I Defensive Player of the Week Jaden Katsis led the Cougars with 20 digs, marking her second consecutive 20-dig performance and third in the last four matches. Hotone Tarui added 11 digs, while Paola Batista contributed six kills on .286 hitting.
Set-by-Set Recap
First Set: The teams traded blows throughout the early stages before a two-point spurt put Barton ahead for good at 10-8. The Cougars later strung together another pair of points before answering a Colby point with four straight to open a 17-11 advantage. The Trojans briefly responded with consecutive points, but Barton slammed the door with a five-point run en route to the 25-15 opening-set victory.
Second Set: Four Colby errors and a pair of Amanda Riepe service aces staked Barton to a commanding 6-0 advantage, and the Cougars never looked back. Colby trimmed the deficit to three on multiple occasions, but Barton answered with four straight to rebuild a 15-8 lead. The Cougars eventually stretched the margin to a set-high nine at 24-15 before securing the 25-17 victory and taking a commanding two-set lead.
Third Set: After Colby was plagued by errors in the second frame, Barton returned the favor in the third as the Trojans seized early control with an 8-2 advantage. The Cougars responded with a four-point run to pull within 9-7, but that would be as close as they would get. Barton mounted one final charge with four straight points to trim the deficit to 23-19 before Colby claimed the final two points for the 25-19 victory.
Fourth Set: Colby carried its momentum into the fourth frame, building an early 5-1 advantage before Barton rallied with four straight points to grab its first lead at 11-10. The Trojans answered with three consecutive points to move back in front 14-12, eventually stretching the margin to four on multiple occasions, including at 23-19.
Barton claimed the next two points before Colby reached set point at 24-21. The Cougars refused to fold, rattling off three straight to draw even at 24 and ignite a back-and-forth battle. Barton eventually seized match point at 28-27, but Colby fought it off before finally converting its eighth set-point opportunity to claim a 31-29 victory and force the deciding fifth frame.
Fifth Set: After exchanging the opening points, Barton claimed consecutive points on two occasions to build a 6-3 advantage. The Cougars maintained their three-point cushion through 10-7 before Colby rallied with three straight to pull even.
Barton regained control and built a 13-10 advantage, moving within two points of victory. Colby answered with a point, and a Barton timeout couldn’t halt the momentum as the Trojans claimed the next three to take a 14-13 lead. Following another Cougar timeout, Colby delivered the final blow to complete a five-point closing run and the reverse sweep.
