News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 8, 2009

COMETS STRUGGLE OVER THE WEEKEND, GO 0-3

It was a tough weekend for the Cottey College Comets as they faced three opponents and ended up losing to all three. On Saturday, September 5, Cottey hosted both Labette County Community College and Ft. Scott Community College in a tri-match. In the opening round, the Comets fell to Labette 14-25, 25-16, 18-25, 20-25, and in the final match of the day, the Ft. Scott Greyhounds swept the Comets 14-25, 21-25, 19-25. On Monday, Cottey traveled to Miami, Oklahoma, to face Northeast Oklahoma A&M Community College and fell in three games 19-25, 10-25, 17-25.

A packed house greeted the Comets on Saturday as Cottey took the court for the first home match of the season. Despite the team's struggles on the court, it was a loud crowd in Hinkhouse Center and they showed their appreciation for every point the Comets scored from the opening serve through the final score.

The young Comets, with seven freshmen and only two returning players, looked to match up well with both Labette and Ft. Scott on Saturday, as both of those teams are also thin on returning players and have lots of freshmen on the roster. Labette's Cardinals have three sophomores and eight freshmen, and Ft. Scott's Greyhounds have only two sophomores on their 11-player roster. None of the three teams was going to have the edge in experience in the Saturday tri-match.

What both Labette and Ft. Scott did have, however, was a slightly deeper bench and more height at the net. The Comets have excellent serving and passing skills, but without a big blocker at the net on defense, they have to execute perfectly on offense.

Against Labette, the Comets looked out-of-sync in game one, falling behind 2-8 early. Cottey never could make up that six-point difference, trailing 10-16 before the Cardinals extended the final to an 11-point differential.

Game two looked like a different Cottey team entirely as they jumped out to a commanding 11-6 lead with great serving and pinpoint passing. The Comets built the lead to 18-9 and held the nine-point advantage through the end of the game.

Game three was a tight battle in the first half. If the Comets could have held on, the entire match may have turned out differently. Cottey grabbed a quick 5-2 lead in the early minutes, only to see Labette tie the game at eight. The Comets only trailed by a point, 10-11, when Labette began to take advantage of Cottey mistakes. The Cardinals outscored Cottey 5-9 over the next few minutes to take control of the game and the match.

Despite being down 1-2, the Comets gave the crowd one of the best games of the day in the fourth and final game. This game had it all: close scores, long rallies, great passing, and a crowd that was deafening at times. Cottey had a slim 7-6 lead early when Labette was penalized for having a player out of rotation. The Comets were awarded a point and held an 8-6 lead before the Cardinals tied it up at nine. Both teams traded points and remained tied through 13, before Labette grabbed a 15-18 lead and Cottey called a timeout. Both teams earned a point before Labette squeaked ahead 17-22. Following another Comets' timeout, Cottey went on the offensive and scored three consecutive points to pull within two at 20-22. By this time the fans in Hinkhouse were fired up and saw one of the longest rallies of the entire day on the next point. Unfortunately for the home crowd, it went to Labette and they were able to close out the game and match.

Comets' team leaders against Labette were Janelle Crowell and Taylor Means with three aces each, Natalie Larsen and Kailey Kelly with 13 assists each, Kelly with nine kills, and Means and Emily Moore with nine digs each.

In the second match, the Comets again came out cold in game one as the Greyhounds built an early lead and pulled away for a relatively easy win.

The second game was a much better contest as the Comets had an early lead at 4-3. The teams were tied at 13, and neither team could gain an advantage as the scores went from Cottey holding a one-point lead to being tied. The Comets managed to build the lead to 19-16, and then to 21-17, seeming to take control of the game. Everything went wrong from that point for the Comets, however, as they did not score another point in the game, and a four-point lead turned into a four-point loss.

In the final game of the day, the Comets fell behind early, but fought back to a 14-all tie. They only trailed by two at 17-19, before the Greyhounds used their height advantage and pulled away for the win and the sweep.

Comets' team leaders against Ft. Scott were Crowell with four aces and five kills, Kelly with 11 assists, and a three-way tie in digs with Crowell, Moore, and Kelly with five each.

On Monday, the Comets hit the road to face another team with more height and more depth on the bench.

"It seems like all the opponents are loaded with height, depth, and/or experience this year," said head coach Marla Kannady Foreman. "We are obviously building from graduating six sophomores last year, and I really don't think the win/loss record shows how much this year's young team has improved since the first match. It's definitely going to be a character building experience for everyone."

It was definitely a character-builder as the Lady Norse controlled the tempo, especially in games two and three. Team leaders for the Comets were Chrissy Echeverria with two aces and 11 kills, Kelly with 12 assists, Andrea Hass with two blocks, and Moore with 14 digs.

With the losses, the Comets' record fell to 0-5 on the season. The Comets will have a full week to heal up from injuries and illnesses before hitting the road on Monday, September 14, to face Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri. The next home match for the Comets will be on Friday, October 2, at 7 p.m. when they will take the court against Ozark Christian College.