By Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information

Hickory, N.C.---The No. 5 Owens Community College volleyball team knocked off undefeated Monroe (N.Y.) College and Spartanburg Methodist (S.C.) College to close out play in the Catawba Valley Invitational today.

Both of today's opponents were National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I teams. Owens competes at the NJCAA Division II level.

Match 1: No. 5 Owens d. Spartanburg Methodist 25-17, 25-21, 25-19

Owens opened up the day by sweeping Spartanburg Methodist, which fell to 16-6 overall with the loss.

Macy Reigelsperger (Coldwater/Coldwater, Ohio) produced a team-high 11 kills, while adding two aces, four digs and four blocks. Erika Hartings (Coldwater/Coldwater, Ohio) added nine kills, two digs and one block. Ally Mikesell (St. Henry/St. Henry, Ohio) and Tyanna Smith (Bowling Green/Bowling Green, Ohio) each finished third on the team with five kills.

Deanna Smith (Riverview/Riverview, Mich.) and Christine Tylutki (Monroe/Monroe, Mich.) led the way in assists with 18 and 13, respectively. Brooke Gyori (Clay/Oregon, Ohio), who had the team's only other assist, had team-highs with 23 digs and three aces.

Tyanna Smith led the way in blocks with six (one solo).

Owens picked up the win despite struggling to hit efficiently. After a .237 hitting percentage in the first set, the team hit .062 and .026 in the final two sets to finish at .111. 

However, a strong team effort led the way. Six different players had at least one kill, nine players had at least one dig and the team totaled eight aces.

Match 2: No. 5 Owens d. Monroe College 23-25, 26-24, 25-21, 25-21

Down one set and facing two set points in the second, Owens battled its way to a tough second set win and captured the next two sets, as well, to knock off undefeated Monroe College in today's set match.

Monroe entered the match with a 31-0 record and had lost only four sets all season.

Reigelsperger was a dominant force in the match as the sophomore totaled a career-high 24 kills with a .478 hitting percentage. She eclipsed her previous record of 20 kills set on Sept. 30 of this season, and she also added seven digs and four blocks.

Assisting her at the net for the second straight match was Tyanna Smith, who totaled a team-high six blocks (two solo).

Hartings finished second on the team with 11 kills. Mikesell and Taylor Purcell (Bedford/Temperance, Mich.) each chipped in seven. Mikesell hit .375 over 16 attacks.

Deanna Smith (28) and Tylutki (18) led the team in assists. Similar to the first match, the only other player with an assist was Gyori, who finished with two, while adding a team-high 27 digs. She also had one of the team's two aces along with Hartings.

Mikesell chipped in 21 digs, and Tylutki finished third on the team with 11. Nine different players recorded at least one dig.

In the second match, Owens improved its hitting percentage to .221 as a team. They hit .333 in the first and third sets. They finished with 14 blocks (four solo), as well.

Wrap Up

Owens is now 27-5 overall. Today's wins improve a season-high winning streak to 13, and eight of those have came in straight sets. The team will be back in action Wednesday at home against Lakeland Community College beginning at 5 p.m.

Gyori, who eclipsed 500 digs on the season last week, broke the 600 mark in today's second match.