Knights split games against Southwestern and Vernon on Friday

Coffeyville, Kan. – The North Platte Community College volleyball team split games on Friday against Southwestern University JV and Vernon College.

North Platte 3 Southwestern 1

Fatima Gomez and Nya Lual accounted for nine kills apiece. EmiLee Walnofer tallied six aces, while Aubrey Grant recorded 26 assists against the Moundbuilders.

Knights cruised in the opening set with a dominating offensive performance. Back-to-back aces by Walnofer extended the lead to seven. The margin was stretched to 20-7 after a kill by Jaelyn Dicke, but the Moundbuilders rallied to cut the deficit to six late in the set. A kill by Trinity Beutler ignited the offense as the Knights took set one, 25-17.

No lead was safe as teams traded points throughout the second set. An ace from Beutler helped North Platte take a 19-18 lead, but three straight points pushed the Moundbuilders ahead late. Knights answered to even the score again at 21, but the Moundbuilders went on to claim the set.

The Knights came out strong in the third to jump out to a 10-3 advantage. Southwestern quietly rallied before a 4-1 run evened the set at 14. North Platte exchanged points but would not relinquish their lead down the stretch to take a 2-1 set advantage. 

North Platte trailed by as many as three points in the early moments of the fourth. Southwestern errors helped the Knights stay close until a 5-0 run swung the momentum in the favor of the black and gold. Southwestern managed to trim the margin to one late, but North Platte capitalized on offense to close out the match.

Vernon 3 North Platte 0

Dicke led the way offensively with 10 kills, while logging 16 digs against the Chaparrals.

Vernon distanced themselves early in the opening set. North Platte rallied to cut the deficit to three, but the Chaparrals quickly went back on the offensive to take the opening set, 25-20.

North Platte trailed by as many as three in the early stages of the second set. A short rally evened the match until Vernon surged ahead with four straight points. Knights narrowed the margin to one late, but a 3-0 run secured the set for the Chaparrals.

A 5-1 run gave the Chaparrals the advantage to open the third set. The deficit grew to seven before the Knights narrowed the margin to 14-10 on a kill by Lual. Vernon maintained their grip on the lead for the remainder of the set to seal the match.

Knights will conclude the weekend road trip as they travel to Arkansas City, Kan. on Saturday. First serve is set for 1 p.m. against Ranger College.