Volleyball team scrapes with Cougars, lose in four

Last Friday at Mt. Hood, the Saints gave the South Region-leading Clackamas Community College Cougars a battle, before dropping the match in four sets (27-25, 22-25, 25-22, 25-17).

In the first set, the Saints got off to a quick start and led late in the game, before the Cougars stormed back.

In volleyball, the first team to 25 points wins a set, but it must win by two points.

The Saints were first to 25, but the Cougars’ 24 points forced the win-by-two rule.

The Cougars stole the set, scoring three straight points for the 27-25 victory.

Set Two played out to the Saints’ favor. They started out strong and never looked back, taking the set 25-22.

With the match deadlocked (1-1), some started to wonder if the Saints might just be able to take down the undefeated (in league play) Cougars.

Next came a hard-fought third set between the two squads. The Cougars had a strong start, yet the Saints fought their way back late in the set, before Clackamas held on for a 25-22 win.

In Set Four, the Cougars showed everyone why they are the team to beat in the South Region. Their (25-17) victory gave them the match over Mt. Hood.

Statistically, there were some monster performances for the Saints.

Sophomore setter Shealee Lindsey had 40 assists, 11 more than the whole Cougars roster.

Freshman outside hitter Jessica Pedro and sophomore right side hitter Devin Saucy helped the Saints on the attacking end. Pedro recorded 18 kills, while Saucy had 13 kills.

Sophomore libero Kiana Miller led the Saints on the defensive end with 19 defensive digs.

MHCC coach Andrew Clifton had positive things to say about the match. “I think we kept our emotional control well, especially playing the top-seeded team in the South. We definitely were ready to play.

“They did a good job of learning what (the Cougars’) weaknesses were during the match as well. As the match went on, we learned more about them,” he said.

Clifton said the Saints need to work on finishing out games. He said the Clackamas match was a good indicator of what his team is capable of this year.

“I’ve heard a lot of people say that it was a really good match, and I think that’s evidence of the level of play we were playing and it’s just being able to sustain that at the most crucial time,” he said. “Once we kind of get that taken care of, we’ll be a really tough team to beat.”