Lady Tiger volleyball team captures district title, makes a return trip to the national tourney

The No. 1-ranked Cowley College volleyball team continued its dominance with a 25-14, 25-12, 25-11 win over third-seeded Allen Community College in the Plains A District Tournament Championship played Saturday at Friends University in Wichita, KS. The victory improves Cowley's record to 37-0 and sends the Lady Tigers back to the NJCAA Division II National Tournament for a third straight year.

Allen finishes the season with a record of 20-10, while Cowley moves on to play November 15-18 at the national tournament in Cedar Rapids, IA.

In Saturday's championship, Cowley was in complete control as they finished with a .400 hitting percentage as a team.

"I thought we did a good job of being us," Cowley head coach Steven Gream said. "We balanced the court, served aggressively, and kept the pressure on them the entire match."

Cowley finished with eight service aces and was led in hitting by freshman Laura Bonomi, who finished with 14 kills and 11 digs.

Sophomore setter Rossana Papa joined Bonomi with a double-double, finishing with 35 assists and 10 digs. Fellow sophomores Anna Kiss (10 kills) and Sadie Kabisch (22 digs) also played well.

"Our sophomores put in the work since last spring to up their game, especially Rossana, who had to recover from an injury and get the rust off from being out a whole season," Gream said.

Freshmen Sara Puskus added 13 kills, while Valerie Luna and Lu Ceroni chipped in with five and four kills, respectively.

"Our freshmen stepped right in and learned our system and have worked hard to improve each day," Gream said. "These efforts have paid off throughout the season."

Cowley will now await to see who they will play to open the national tournament.

'"From day one of preseason, the goal was to get back to the national tournament," Gream said. "The team stuck to the plan, played to our standards, played for each other with our motto of 'With Each Other, For Each Other,' and we are excited to return to the national tournament."