CHEYENNE, WYOMING – The Laramie County Community College Golden Eagles hosted McCook Community College for Region IX match-up on Tuesday evening. The Golden Eagles won in five sets: 20-25, 25-23, 25-20, 23-25 and 15-11.
McCook came out early in the first set and jumped out to an early lead. The Golden Eagles chipped away at the lead and cut it one midway through before the Indians pulled away in the end. LCCC jumped out to an early 10-2 lead in the second set and then the Indians got a run of their own and leveled things up at 17-17. The Golden Eagles managed to hold off MCC and take the second set. In set three, LCCC led the entire way and closed out the set to jump up 2-1 in the match. McCook would battle and take the fourth set and LCCC answered right back in the fifth set for the victory.
Avery Nelson (Colorado Springs, Colorado) led the way tying a career-high 21 kills and adding two blocks. Freshman Jazzy Espinoza (Cheyenne, Wyoming) had a season-high 17 kills with a .538 hitting percentage and three blocks. Kylie Martin (Gypsum, Colorado) and Elizabeth Clark (Sandy, Utah) each chipped in with eight kills. Kasandra Sturges (Parker, Colorado) had a double-double with 34 assists and 10 digs. Gwen Sheldon (Loveland, Colorado) had 17 assists and seven digs.
"McCook is a very talented team and just a few weeks ago they came out and took it to us," said coach Albers. "This is one that we really wanted to get back and our ladies showed that with their effort. We had some big stand out performances, but the biggest thing that stuck out to me was that we showed the ability to settle into a game plan with our back against the wall after dropping the first set. That shows some understanding and maturity that we will need as we near the postseason."
The Golden Eagles will host Central Wyoming College for a Region IX North match this Friday at 7:00 PM, followed by Western Wyoming Community College on Saturday at 3:00 PM.