Swanson Helps Lead Red to 3-2 Win over Blue in NCA All-Star Match
LINCOLN – The great players are able to find another gear when it comes to crunch time and in the fifth set of Tuesday night’s NCA All-Star Match at Lincoln North Star, Illinois recruit Kyla Swanson of Wahoo showed why…
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Continue ReadingLINCOLN – The great players are able to find another gear when it comes to crunch time and in the fifth set of Tuesday night’s NCA All-Star Match at Lincoln North Star, Illinois recruit Kyla Swanson of Wahoo showed why she’s a great player.
Swanson had a hand in six of the Red’s first seven points in the decisive third set, propelling her team out to a 7-2 lead en route to a 26-28, 25-20, 25-16, 22-25, 15-9 victory. Swanson finished the match with 13 kills and five blocks in her final appearance as a high school athlete.
The Blue squad tried chipping away at the fifth-set lead and a pair of kills by Gretna’s Kamryn Schuler – a Nebraska-Kearney recruit – got Blue within 10-6 and Johnson-Brock’s Fallon Stutheit got a kill a little later than closed the gap to 12-9.
But, another kill from Swanson followed by one from Freeman’s Kayla Haynes – an Omaha recruit – and a hitting error by the Blue team allowed Red to go on a. 3-0 run to end the match.
Humphrey-Lindsay Holy Family’s Taya Beller had nine kills and an ace serve for Blue – which had a very balanced offensive attack all night, thanks to the standout play of Millard West libero Jaiden Centeno – an Iowa State recruit – and the setting of Papillion-LaVista South’s Mara LeGrand – a Regis University recruit – and Midland University recruit Hope Leimbach from Lincoln Lutheran.
Bishop Neumann’s Kelsie Cada – a Wayne State recruit – finished with seven kills and a block while Augustana recruit Lexie Langley of Archbishop Bergan also finished with seven kills and two aces. Lincoln Pius X right side Anna McLain – a Queens University recruit – had six kills and a block Seward’s Camryn Opfer – who is staying home to play at Concordia – had six kills and a block.
Leimbach finished with 22 assists and ace while LeGrand had 21 assists, two kills and an ace.
For the Blue, Wyoming recruit Emersen Cyza of Alliance had a really strong showing, finishing with 10 kills and a block while Michaela Bartles of Bennington – a Nebraska-Kearney recruit – had eight kills and five blocks. Wayne State recruit Elly Larson of Wahoo and Creighton recruit Emily Bressman of Omaha Marian each had seven kills and an ace.
Omaha recruit Sami Clarkson of Omaha Concordia had 26 assists for Blue and Cornell recruit Emma Worthington of Omaha Duchesne had 14.
Clarkson and Opfer were named the Most Outstanding Teammates for their respective teams.