SENATOBIA – In one of their grittiest performances of the year, the Northwest Mississippi Community College volleyball team (23-0, 4-0) kept their season unblemished with a four-set win over visiting Pearl River Community College (16-4, 3-1), surviving a brutal third set that went to extra points before coming from behind in the final set to take down the #21 Wildcats.

"It was a very good team bonding experience, and I feel we got stronger today," sophomore setter Dallas White said. "They are a really good team, and we were just better tonight. It was good to see all of us come together and defend everyone who was on that court and play for each other."

Despite starting out with the opening sets going their way, 25-15 and 25-7, Northwest would go to extra points in the third, falling 32-30 before coming back from down 21-18 in the fourth set to win it 25-22.

"Any time we can play at home with the crowd behind us, it's big," Head Coach Allison Burchyett said. "I mean, [Pearl River] brought their A game. They were blocking us like crazy, and we had to make adjustments, and the team did. I wanted them to work to earn points and not wait to be given points, and I think they stepped up and accepted that challenge."

The opening set was a tense affair early on, with five ties on the way to a 13-13 score. That was when the Rangers took off, rolling behind a strong attack led by Ariana Woods and Sofia Gonzalez, with the duo combining for ten kills in the opening set on the way to a 25-15 victory.

That momentum carried into the opening of the second set, where they would jump out early to a large lead on the serve of Reese McIntosh, who set the tone with four of her five aces in the set during her opening service run on the way to a 6-0 lead.

"I think we all just came out in ready to roll," White said. "Our hitters were on. Our passers were on. Our sets were on. We just played a really good game in that second set."

Pearl River never could get their feet underneath them as they continued to struggle in the set, only picking up back-to-back points once on the way to falling in the set 25-7. Northwest would hit an astounding .545 in the set with 14 kills and only two hitting errors, while also piling up eight total aces as a team.

Northwest knew that Pearl River would slow down, and the Wildcats found the lead early, going up 6-4, and despite multiple ties, they were able to hold off the Rangers on several runs that came close to pushing them over the edge.

Eventually, the Rangers were able to break through the dam, taking the lead on a late run to go up 24-23, but that was just the beginning of what would turn into a classic set. Northwest had set point six times, but every time the Wildcats had the answer back, while mixing in a few set points of their own, they eventually took the 31-30 lead and held onto it for the win, extending the match to a third set.

"The energy that we left that set with, even though the ball just wasn't hitting the floor like we wanted it to, we still fought back and knew we had to try to come back with more of everything in the next set," White said.

It was almost déjà vu in the fourth, with the Wildcats again surging out to an early lead, and again they would hold Northwest off from any leads after taking the lead back at 5-4. Pearl River extended the lead overtime to a match-high five at 18-13, and it seemed like they were going to force it to a fifth, but Northwest rallied, fighting back to take momentum back and closed the game to an 18-16 set on a rally kicked off by Dallas White's lone kill of the match on a dump over the net.

"I felt like we needed a momentum changer and to do something different," she said. "That spot was open, so I just took the chance, and it just landed right in the middle of the court like I wanted it to. We just needed a mood changer, something different. Our hitters were getting blocked, and I wasn't, and it gave them something different."

The Rangers didn't take the lead on the rally, but they did gain confidence, keeping the Wildcats in sight, and after trailing again 21-17, they would go on a run of their own again, taking the lead at 23-22 and closing the set with a pair of kills from Woods to seal the win 25-22.

With both teams entering the match at 3-0 in conference play, and both with impressive wins on the resume, this match had the feel of one with a little extra riding on it.

"It's a good measuring stick going into the end of the season and the postseason to see where we are and things to work on," Burchyett said. "Having so many options on the offensive side is such a good thing. When someone is struggling, someone else steps up, so I'm proud of our team for being so team-oriented and not so much individual-oriented."

Those kills gave Woods a match-high and season-high 20 kills, tying her with Jacia Hayes, who played for the Rangers in 2022-23 and managed 533 kills. Sofia Gonzalez added 14 kills for her fourth straight match with double figures, and Valerie Hurdle finished with 12 of her own. Ten total players recorded a kill, with only Laney Wier not tallying one in the match.

"We have to depend on them," White said "It's important that we don't have one hitter to depend on all the time. It's very nice as a setter to know I have three or four options on the court all the time. It just works because I can just find my hitters and set them and pray that they get it."

Northwest finished the match with 56 assists on those kills, led by Chloe Rodriguez who set a career best mark with 26 assists, and was joined in double figures by White who added 16 of her own.

The serving game was just as devastating for the Rangers, picking up 14 with McIntosh with six, Woods with five, and Rose with three. They only committed seven errors on the serve as a team, most of which came early in the third set.

The back row was also strong, earning 81 digs on the night against a very strong attack from the Wildcats. Rose led the roster with 14. She was followed closely by White and Gonzalez, who both completed double-doubles with 12 digs each. Callahan added 11 more, and McIntosh finished with nine.

With the win, the Rangers cap off their second win over a ranked opponent in the last two weeks and their third of the season. It also improved their overall record in sets played to 69-2 on the year.

"We have the potential to make it all the way to nationals, and tonight just proves even more that we can handle those teams no matter what happens," White said.

The week is just getting started in what will be their most difficult stretch of the year. They have one more home match with East Central Community College (2-8, 1-2) coming to town before heading to the coast, where they will have challenges against another ranked team in #18 Lurleen B. Wallace Community College (17-1) and Enterprise State Community College (17-5), which is receiving votes. They will also face off with Bishop State Community College (7-10) and Snead State Community College (9-14) in rematches from earlier this year.

Burchyett said she is excited to go into another challenge to keep her team on their toes.

"I think it's exciting for our team to face some teams that are playing really well," she said. "A good team rises to the occasion. We are going to try to bring different options and still play consistent volleyball."

Keep up with the Rangers all season long by visiting nwccrangers.com or by following along on Ranger social media accounts.