Chargers Flip Script on Kankakee After Late Rally in 2nd Set

GALESBURG — The Carl Sandburg College volleyball team rallied from a sluggish start to dispatch Kankakee 22-25, 26-24, 25-20, 25-20 in a Region 4 matchup Thursday night at John Lewis Gym.

The Chargers (23-10) managed to win their 18th straight contest at home despite dropping the first set and facing set point in the second.

Down 24-21 to the Cavaliers in the second, Sandburg turned the match upside down with a 5-0 run to steal the set. Ayla Cannon opened the streak with a kill, and back-to-back kills from Natalie Burden evened the score. A Lillian Isenhour kill set up set point for the Chargers before Grace Vyhnanek put it away with an ace.

Sandburg opened up a 19-11 lead in the third after rattling off five straight points, including three consecutive kills from Burden. Kankakee pulled within 23-20, but the Chargers wrapped up the set as Isenhour and Grace Evans combined for a block, and Addison DeSpain put down a kill. 

Tied at 19 in the fourth, another 5-0 run helped Sandburg close out the match. DeSpain opened the run with a kill, and Cannon added a block. After a Kankakee error, Vyhnanek set Cannon up for a kill, and Madeline Mooney served her third ace of the night. Cannon's kill on match point was her team-leading 15th of the night (one off her season-high), and she finished with a .667 hitting percentage while playing in front of a large contingent of fans from Burlington (Iowa) High School, her alma mater.

Burden totaled 13 kills in the win, and DeSpain had seven kills, three aces (tying Mooney for the team lead) and 10 digs.

Vyhnanek dished out 37 assists, and Mooney had a team-best 16 to lead Sandburg defensively. 

UP NEXT FOR SANDBURG
6:30 p.m. Tuesday vs. Illinois Valley. Sophomore Night festivities will take place prior to the match.

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