An epic fourth-set rally led Allen Community College to a third straight win Monday night as the Red Devils took on Ottawa’s junior varsity team in a non-conference matchup.
Allen County took the first set in dominant fashion. The Red Devils jumped out to a fast start, winning 25-13. With a stadium full of excited fans and momentum on their side, the Red Devils were in control going into the break.
The second set is where Ottawa began to catch on. Allen County came out of the gates slower than the first set, falling behind Ottawa early in the set.
Toward the end of the second set, Ottawa held a 21-20 lead before a five point rally by the Red Devils gave the home squad a 2-0 lead as both teams went into the third set.
Allen County came out sluggish in the third set, falling behind by as many as seven points at one time. Ottawa would ultimately win the third set 25-21, derailing Allen County’s hopes of a sweep.
“We knew we were going to have to do something to contain their outside hitters,” said Red Devils head coach Whitney Shaw, shortly after the win. “We don’t do scouting reports on non-conference opponents. We already played them twice and knew what they do.”
The fourth set saw Allen County on the brink of loss multiple times. At one point in the set, Allen County trailed by as many as seven points.
Late in the fourth set, Allen County tied the score at 25-25. The two teams would trade the lead a few more times before Allen County delivered a serve with the Red Devils up 28-27.
That serve led to the final point for Allen County as Sadie Bakerburg hit one that Ottawa couldn’t get to, ending the fourth and final set 29-27.
With the experience of having played Ottawa twice earlier in the season, Shaw knew what adjustments needed to be made.
“We made some adjustments to our defense from the beginning,” Shaw said. “Last time we made them mid-set.This time we just wanted them right out of the gate.”
Gabriela Dominguez, a freshman, led the Red Devils in offense, ending the game with 22 kills and just five errors. Defensively, Alexis Hafenstine recorded 20 digs and four errors.
With the win, Allen County moves to 11-10 on the season, riding a three-game winning streak. The Red Devils will be in action again Thursday when they head to Northwestern Oklahoma A&M for a non-conference game.
