Roswell, NM – The No. 9 nationally ranked Indian Hills Volleyball squad battled to a pair of five-set victories on Friday, including a come-from-behind win over No. 7 Weatherford College (TX) on the second day of the NMMI Classic hosted by New Mexico Military Institute.
In the opener against Dodge City Community College (KS) on Friday, the Warriors rallied from a 2-0 series deficit to secure a 3-2 win over the Conquistadors. Indian Hills picked up the win by set scores of 8-25, 25-27, 25-19, 25-17, and 15-10. In a highly anticipated matchup of two national tournament teams from a year ago, the Warriors once again battled back late against Weatherford to improve to 3-0 on the year. The Warriors won by set scores of 25-18, 24-26, 26-24, 12-25, and 22-20.
The Warriors have now won three consecutive matches to open the year after a 3-0 sweep of Eastern Arizona College on Thursday night. With the win over Weatherford, the Warriors have now won nine matches over top-10 nationally ranked opponents over the past three seasons.
Despite the early deficit against Dodge City in Friday's opener, the Warriors relied on its heavy hitters to spark a comeback. Sophomore Sara Van Gisteren (Leuth, Netherlands/Young Talent Academy ROC Nijmegen) and freshman Piper Nelson (Atkins, IA/Benton) combined for 29 kills to rally from a 2-0 hole. Freshman Joanna Pawlik (Lublin, Poland/Nauczycieli Tajnego Nauczania) added 10 kills while boasting a .391 hitting percentage on the night. Indian Hills rallied past the Conquistadors in the fifth set after combining for nine kills and zero errors in 18 total attempts.
Defensively, sophomore Sabrina Nogueira Da Silva (São Paulo, Brazil/Colégio Campos Salles) led the Warriors with 23 digs while freshman Asialin Powell (Des Moines, IA/Roosevelt) put together another solid performance with 10 digs. Sophomore Ana Carolina Westerich (Blumenau, Brazil/Colégio Energia) tallied 44 assists and a pair of service aces for the Warriors.
In the nightcap vs. Weatherford, ranked No. 7 in the preseason polls after an impressive showing during its inaugural campaign last year, the Warriors used its momentum from the opening win to steal the first set. The two sides traded sets to force a decisive fifth frame. Trailing 14-11 in the tiebreaker, the Warriors battled back in a thrilling finale that resulted in a kill from Van Gisteren and a block from Pawlik to seal the victory.
Van Gisteren put together one of the most dominant performances of her Indian Hills tenure with a career-high 29 kills on 60 attempts for a .367 hitting percentage. Sophomore Daniela De Los Santos Castillo (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic/Colegio los Clavelines) starred for the Warriors as well with a career-high 11 kills and four blocks, including two solo stops.
Da Silva eclipsed the 30-dig plateau for the first time in her career with 32 in the win. Westerich once again paced the offense with 53 assists, surpassing the 50-assist mark for the sixth time in her career. Sophomore Iva Mrkaic (Belgrade, Serbia/Sports Gymnasium) played a key role in the win over Weatherford with five kills and three blocks for the Warriors.
Indian Hills will close out play at the NMMI Classic on Saturday with another top-10 showdown against No. 8 Odessa College (TX). First serve is set for 11:00 AM CT.
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