The College Heights Cougars nearly rallied all the way back from a two-set deficit in their Ozark 7 Conference match Monday against the visiting Golden City Eagles.
Golden City broke a 5-all tie in the deciding fifth set and scored nine unanswered points to build a 14-5 lead on the way to a thrilling 3-2 win (25-22, 25-19, 14-25, 22-25, 15-7).
The Cougars played without their outstanding senior and four-sport star Addie Lawrence.
“Tonight was our first night without Addie Lawrence,” College Heights coach Mary Colin said. “We didn’t find out until midday, so we had about five hours to mentally prepare. The cool thing about this team is that they were sadder about missing their teammate than they were about her kills, because we all know that she can really kill the ball. They were sad about her not being out there.
“Then, with a new lineup, it took us a couple sets to get a rhythm and they just started playing their hearts out. Addie was on the sideline cheering them on the entire time, which I thought was cool, and I thought Lauren (Ukena) had a great night hitting well. She hit some spots, and she hit with some power. Lindsay (Griesemer) came up and would crank the line and mix it up. I thought Ava (Masena) covered the floor well, and she hit the ground a lot. Then, I thought Maddy (Colin) had a great night.
“The match came down to ball control and when that happens, it goes across the net multiple times. She’s (Maddy Colin) having to work hard to get the ball multiple times. It was a fun, competitive match.
“Golden City’s good. I think it was like in the third set and I turned to the bench and said that’s their first error. They do have great ball control. They put it where they want to, and they’re hard to defend. It makes for an aggressive match.”
Golden City started the match strong with five of the first six points, College Heights went on a 6-0 run to go ahead 7-5, and Golden City’s 9-0 run in the second half of the set turned a 12-10 deficit into a 19-12 advantage. The Eagles built a big enough lead to fend off a late College Heights charge and earned a couple side-outs to win the first set 25-22.
Golden City used three different 3-0 scoring runs late in the second set to take it 25-19 after the foes were even at 16.
After breaking an 8-all tie in the third set, the Cougars put together their best volleyball of the night by scoring 17 of the final 23 points for a 25-14 third set.
College Heights overtook Golden City in the fourth and forced a fifth set behind a 5-0 run to erase a deficit and a 4-0 run that built a four-point lead after Golden City tied it up at 15.
College Heights dropped to 15-4-1 overall and 1-1 in Ozark 7 play, and the Cougars return to action Tuesday at home against Big 8 Conference opponent East Newton.
Lauren Ukena led the Cougars with 22 kills Monday, and she added five aces and nine digs to her line. Maddy Colin tallied 44 assists, five aces, and 11 digs. Ava Masena added 18 digs, 15 service points, and four aces, while Lindsay Griesemer had 12 kills and four aces and Marley Woodford also had 12 kills.
The Cougars do not know when Lawrence will return to the lineup from her injury.
“Her senior teammates were so sad, and they said we have been playing alongside her our entire lives, like every match they’ve played at College Heights has been with her,” Coach Colin said. “She’s greatly missed.”
COLIN RECOGNIZED FOR CAREER MILESTONE
Junior setter Maddy Colin was recognized after the match Monday for her recently surpassing 1,000 assists during her high school volleyball career.
She’s already nearly one-fifth of the way to her next thousand assists in just the week since reaching the 1,000-assist milestone.
“Maddy’s a very unselfish player,” Coach Colin said. “She just gives the ball and gives the ball. She could be an offensive threat. In fact, sometimes I want her to be more of an offensive threat, but that just means that she’s dishing it out and not being selfish. She has really good court awareness. I’ll reference her as the quarterback, because she puts the ball in the right place at the right time.
“She works her tail off to get to it, and there are balls that she probably shouldn’t go for but she’s going for them. She had a good serving night (Monday) and was aggressive on the service line. I’m really proud of her.”
Maddy Colin received a standing ovation from College Heights fans and her schoolmates.
“She was totally surprised,” Coach Colin said. “She had no clue. She would never have thought anything was about her or her assists or recognition for her. She was touched, which is cool, but it was also cool to see all the people rally around her in support. They know how hard she works, and they know that she’s super unselfish.”
