ELLISVILLE – Call it cliché if you want, but the Northwest Mississippi Community College volleyball team (30-6) left it all on the court on Saturday afternoon in a five set thriller against Pearl River Community College (28-10), going to extra points twice on the way to a 25-10, 21-25, 24-26, 25-20, 16-18 as their season came to a close in the Region 23 semifinal hosted by Jones College.
"They laid it all on the court," Head Coach Allison Burchyett said. I was so proud of their effort, their heart, their love for one another, and it was so evident in the way that they played hard for each other."
"We started strong. You don't really know what to do sometimes. The other team played well too, and you have to give them credit for the adjustments and got us a little out of our comfort zone and just struggled to get back."
Northwest was looking for a fast start to the match and got just what the doctor ordered, blowing the Wildcats away on the way to a 16-2 lead in the first set, including a 11-point service run from Hassie Clare Thurman. Pearl River did get a little bit of momentum back at the end of the set to close it back to 25-10, but the Rangers seemed to have made their statement early, particularly in the serving game which picked up six aces in the set, including three from Adalyn Callahan.
Set two was a different beast and it took some time for the two sides to break away from each other. Ties ruled the early part of the set until the Rangers turned an 8-6 deficit to a 12-8 lead on a service run from Dallas White.
Pearl River rallied back to tie the match at 12 all, and after another tie at 13 took their own lead with a 5-0 run and eventually built the lead to 19-14. Northwest was able to close the gap back to a two-point set at 22-20 but the Wildcats took three of the final four points to even the match at 1-1.
The see-saw battle continued into the third where Pearl River again took an early lead on a 4-0 run to end the first ten serves, going up 7-3, but the Rangers fought back to even the set at 12-all thanks to a 4-0 run capped by a Callahan kill. Ties followed at 13, 14, and 15 and this time it was the Rangers who took command of the set with a 5-1 run to go up 20-16 on an ace by Reese McIntosh.
The lead remained at four going to 23-19 and it seemed like Northwest was on the way to a 2-1 lead, but PRCC had other plans and picked seven of the next eight points, including the final four of the set to not only force extra points, but take the set 26-24 and control of the match along with it.
Northwest struggled at the start of the fourth set as momentum seemed to swing back to the Wildcats who surged ahead to an 8-1 lead forcing a timeout by Burchyett.
"I told them to just play for each other and have fun and enjoy the moment," she said of the conversation. "To not be so caught up in the moment to where they couldn't play. We play better when we are relaxed, having fun and enjoying the moment, and there was no reason to put pressure on each other, but to just go out and play the game of volleyball that they have loved since they were a little kid."
The Rangers rallied after the pause and won six of the next seven points to steady the ship and eventually tied the set at eleven. Five points later they took their first lead at 14-13 and broke away with a 7-1 run thanks to a burst of kills from both Aven Matthews and Ariana Woods.
Up 21-15, the Rangers closed the door this time to take the set 25-20 and force a fifth for a spot in the Region 23 championship. Burchyett said the blocking play at the net was key in coming back.
"To step up the blocking game to get so many blocks was a testament to their timing and their work ethic. That was the main reason why we came back in set four, along with ball control and defense."
Errors ruled the way early on for both teams in the final set as the two sides combined for eight on the way to a tie at six. Pearl River was the first to recover and they pulled ahead to an 11-7 lead, and it seemed like the hope was running low for Northwest, but four straight points including two kills by Callahan tied the set and the Rangers added two more from Claire Roberts to tie it again at thirteen.
Ties followed again at 14, 15, and 16 with PRCC getting the break in each of the following points and after going up 17-16, the Wildcats aced out the match on a tough serve to the back line to clinch the set and eliminate the Rangers from postseason contention.
Northwest was led by Callahan in the match as the freshman produced yet another double-double with 15 kills and 16 assists while hitting .263, adding four aces and two assists to an incredible line score. Woods was just behind with 10 kills and eight digs, adding five block assists while at the net and only playing four rotations.
Mathis finished with seven kills in her final match as a Ranger and as typically was the case this season, the Rangers had nine players record a kill during the match.
Chloe Rodriguez was the top setter for the Rangers with 18 in the match along with five blocks and White finished just behind with 16 of her own, adding six aces and nine digs during the nightcap.
Northwest had a strong night serving the ball, picking up 16 aces in the match and had nine blocks on the night as a team and the back row combined for 81 digs, led by Jania Rose who had one of her best nights of the year with 21.
The Ranger sophomore class is the winningest group since the start of the program, combining for 55 wins throughout their time, and Burchyett said they are a group she was proud to coach.
"They are a gritty bunch who care about one another. We have one who might continue playing at the next level and the others have pretty much already decided that this is it and I think they left their heart out on the court today."
There is also lot of talent coming back for the Rangers who will have their eyes set on picking up a Region 23 title for just the second time in school history.
"Our freshman class is really strong and has lots of promise and there is plenty to be excited for to keep pushing in our region," Burchyett said.
The Rangers will be a dangerous team when they come back next year if they can keep a solid core together through the offseason. Keep up with all of the offseason news for the Ranger volleyball team by following along on Northwest social media accounts or by visiting nwccrangers.com.
