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IVCC volleyball falls to Highland in four sets · Illinois Valley - Shaw Local

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  IVCC volleyball falls to Highland in four sets Written by Kevin Schlumber.
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  This article is being read by an automated voice brought to you
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  by Everlett. The IVCC volleyball team had trouble closing out sets Wednesday
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  against Highland, The Cougars scored the final 11 points of the first
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  set and made a late 7-point run in the fourth set in
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  a 25-16, 19-25, 25-19, 25-20 victory in an
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  Arrowhead conference match in Oglesby. I think we were kinda beating ourselves
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  up, IVCC sophomore Caitlin Anderson said. I think we just let them
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  go on runs and let them build momentum off our mistakes. And
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  they just capitalized on that. The Eagles were able to shake off
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  Highland's big surge to close The first set to take control early
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  in the second. Melena Pitt and Ava Curry put down back-to-back kills
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  to open the second set and IVCC led throughout. The Eagles pushed
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  their lead to as many as 9 points at 19:10 when Anderson
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  slammed down a kill and Highland never got closer than five after
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  that. We just didn't play very ins consistent, Anderson said. I think
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  when we played our beat the weren't really picking it up, but
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  we just had too many highs and lows and didn't get enough
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  strung together. Anderson had 15 kills, 9 digs, and a block for
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  the Eagles, who beat the Cougars in 4 sets on September 2nd.
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  Also for ICCC, Curry put down 10 kills and also had 4
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  solo blocks and 3 block assists, while Pitt and Kelsey Frederick had
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  8 kills each, Lauren Harbison had 26 assists with Emma Jarab adding
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  18 and Camille Huckleba getting 12 digs. I thought we had some
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  really good moments, and then we had some moments where we kind
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  of slid off, IVCC coach Kate Viggers said. We just have to
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  find that consistency in every match that we play. The Eagles look
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  to get back on track Friday at home against Moraine Valley before
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  getting back into conference play Wednesday at Blackhawk. At 15-4 overall and
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  5-2 in the conference, IBCC is having its best season in years.
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  They Eagles went 11-16 last year and 8-19 in 2024. IBCC's last
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  winning season was a 13-9 mark in 2023. This group is always
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  wanting to learn, Vigor said. Practices have been really great. They're a
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  very scrappy team. They don't really give up on a whole lot,
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  and we've kind of ran with that throughout the season. They pull
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  themselves out of some really big holes during the season and have
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  that confidence going in. Anderson said experience has been a key factor
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  this season as the Eagles returned nine players from last year's squad.
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  I definitely think it helps that we have a good mix of
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  newcomers and also people who know the environment, Anderson said. Last year
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  we only had one sophomore, so it was kind of hard for
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  all of us freshmen to c grasp the difference in the game
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  from high school to college. So it helps to have some of
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  us who are settled in and some who are eager and pushing.
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  We also have a bigger roster this year, so we're pushing for
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  spots. There's competition for our roles, so I think that helps a
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  lot. It's a really competitive environment, but also a friendly environment. We're
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  friends on and off the court, so that helps. Nearly the entire
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  roster is made up of local players with LaSalle Peru alumni Curry,
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  Frederick Jareb, Carmen Piano, Callie Murtes, Ruby Davis, Anna Reva and Brile
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  Holland, along with former Henry stars Anderson and Harbison, Princeton graduate Carson
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  Brucker, Woodland alum Pitt, and Striator Grad Maya Zavada. I love it,
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  Anderson said. I played against a
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  lot of the girls for a long time. It's way better being
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  on the same side of the net as them. It definitely helps
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  having that connection all being from They same area. It also brings
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  in a lot of community support, which I think is helpful. Huckelba,
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  a Libero from Waterloo, is the lone out of area player. I
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  I think a lot of people don't realize how much local talent
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  we have, Vigor said. A lot of them have played with each
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  other before in club and stuff, so that's a nice aspect. They
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  know each other. It's just nice to see local talent being able
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  to play at a higher level. The Eagles are eyeing a rematch
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  with conference leader Sok Valley for their sophomore night on October 28
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  in Oglesby. Sauk Valley beat IVCC in three sets on September 23
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  in Dixon. IVCC also hopes to have a better postseason showing after
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  being knocked out in three sets in the opener last fall. We
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  just want to get to the postseason. They only take the top
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  op eight, so that's our goal, Viggers said. We want to be
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  strong when we get to the postseason and continue the run we're
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  having. We have to find that consistency. These girls are very talented,
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  so we just have to use that talent to our advantage and
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  want to go out and play and want to win.