MAUSTON, WISC. - A short trip north yielded a 2-2 weekend for the Madison College volleyball team in the Battle for the Dells Tournament held Friday and Saturday at the Woodside Sports Complex. The season's first losses both came in matches against NJCAA Division II teams currently ranked in the nation's top 20.

Game #1: #11 Des Moines Area Community College 3, #5 Madison College 1

The season's first loss came to one of the top teams in NJCAA Division II as the Bears downed the WolfPack by scores of 25-21, 22-25, 25-11, and 25-20. Madison College finished the match with a hitting percentage of .188. The DMACC (1-1) defense held the 'Pack to a .000 percentage in the lopsided third set en route to their third win in four all-time matches between the two programs.

For the second game in a row, sophomore outside hitter Megan Corcoran led the WolfPack in kills with a career-high 14, one more than in the season opener against Clarke University earlier in the week. The former Madison La Follette athlete struggled with ten errors on 42 attempts for a .095 hitting percentage. Also in double figure kills was sophomore opposite Samantha Jacobson with ten, a career-best, on .304 hitting. Setters Keely Brown and Olivia Darkow registered 21 and 14 assists, respectively.

Of the eight blocks for the 'Pack, freshman outside hitter Paige Hostetler had four and sophomore transfer Lori Sanders had three. Hostetler also contribute nine kills on the offensive end. The back row combined for 42 digs, with freshman Kendra Nicolay collecting 14 and fellow first year Maddie Scalissi ten.

Game #2: #5 Madison College 3, Rochester Community & Technical College 0

Despite some difficult hitting in a match between two strong defensive teams, the WolfPack were able to sweep the Yellowjackets by scores of 25-14, 25-23, and 25-13. Madison College ended the match with a .104 attack percentage, and posted their second set of the weekend with .000 mark.

No player reached double-figures in kills as second year Sam Jacobsen registered seven and hit at an impressive .375 clip. Megan Corcoran and freshman Mariah Capra. For Capra, a native of Turtle Lake, Wisconsin, set a career-high in kills while posting a .313 hitting percentage. Keely Brown had a team-best 15 assists, one better than first year setter Olivia Darkow.

Kendra Nicolay (11) and Corcoran (10) each had double-digit digs, and Capra led the play on the frontline with a pair of blocks.

The win marked the third straight and sixth in the last seven meetings against Rochester CTC (0-1).

Game #3: #8 Sauk Valley Community College 3, #5 Madison College 0

In their second match in as many days against a ranked opponent, Madison College was swept 25-15, 25-18, and 25-23 by the eighth-ranked Skyhawks. Though the offense produced a season-low 25 kills, the defense above the net help keep the WolfPack competitive with a dozen blocks, the most in a match in 2017.

Freshman Kenadi Mayo led the 'Pack offensively for the first time in her career with eight kills. The 6'0" outside hitter from Minocqua, Wisconsin, was efficient in her attack with a team-best .333 attack percentage. Paige Hostetler and Megan Corcoran tied for second with six kills each. Sophomore Keely Brown was once again the top setter with 14 assists.

Sophomore Lori Sanders led the impressive effort of thwarting the SVCC (5-0) offense at the net. The UW-Baraboo/Sauk County transfer and Portage, Wisconsin, native delivered on a career-high six blocks, two better than Capra's four blocks, also a collegiate personal best. Kendra Nicolay paced the back row with 13 digs.

The WolfPack is now just 5-17-1 all-time against Sauk Valley after dropping three straight in the head-to-head series.

Game #4: #5 Madison College 3, Highland Community College 0

The weekend finale featured yet another sweep, this time with Madison College coming out on top with a 25-20, 25-12, and 25-17 victory that was backed by a .412 attack percentage in the lopsided second set. The 'Pack finished with a hitting percentage of .235, their first full match percentage over .200.

Using the momentum from her big defensive effort earlier in the day, sophomore middle block Lori Sanders led the offensive attack with a season-high nine kills on 13 attack attempts with just one error, good for a .615 hit percentage. Kenadi Mayo had the second most kills with seven. Setter and former Sun Prairie HS athlete Keely Brown reached 18 kills.

Sanders also tied for the team lead in blocks with three, matching the effort of outside hitter Paige Hostetler. Behind the front line, libero/defensive specialist Maddie Scalissi had 14 digs and Megan Corcoran added a season-high 11 as the WolfPack improved to 12-23-1 all-time against the NJCAA DII Cougars (1-3).
 
Up Next:

Madison College (3-2) will continue its road schedule when it opens the North Central Community College Conference slate with a match at Joliet Junior College on Tuesday, August 29. The WolfPack are 13-2 against the Wolves since joining the N4C, including a still active streak of 11 straight wins. First serve is set for 6:00 p.m. in Joliet, Illinois.

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