ROCK SPRINGS, Wyo. - The College of Southern Idaho Volleyball team took the floor Friday with just one returning starter and a #2 ranking in the NJCAA National Poll. The Golden Eagles showed they deserved to be considered one of the best in the country, knocking off #1 Iowa Western 26-24, 17-24, 25-22, 22-25, 15-11 and #3 Northwest College 25-20, 17-25, 21-25, 25-23, 15-4.
In both matches, CSI jumped out to a one-game lead but each time fell in game two and had to fight back. The Golden Eagles went back and forth with Iowa Western all match, eventually pulling away for the win in game five. Four CSI players finished the match in double-digit kills led by Alycia Wodke with 19. She added 10 digs and one block, while Alexandra Espinosa ended the game with 16 kills and 11 digs. Middle blockers Tawnee Luafalemana and Kendall Brock combined for 21 kills and 11 blocks. Freshman Regan Harr also had an impressive match, finishing with 43 assists, eight digs and three blocks.
Against Northwest, the Golden Eagles trailed two games to one and were down 22-20 in the fourth game. But a spirited pep talk in a time out by sophomore Kendall Brock jump started a 5-1 run to force a game five. Brock started the run with a kill. Then two errors by Northwest and a game-winning kill by Alexandra Espinosa ended the game.
The fifth set was all CSI. The Golden Eagles jumped up to a 3-0 lead before a CSI service error put Northwest on the board. But Wodke made sure there would be no comeback by Northwest, serving the next nine points to give CSI a 12-2 lead that it would never relinquish. Not only did she have one ace in that run, but Wodke also had three back-row kills. Northwest would score three more points before Wodke put away the final kill for the 15-4 win to keep the Golden Eagles perfect on the young season.
Wodke led the Eagles wth 15 kills and nine digs. Espinosa added 13, Brock 12 and Luafalemana 10. Brock and Luafalemana combined for 11 blocks again, while Harr posted 39 assists and a team-leading 14 digs.
CSI plays Sheridan College at 9 a.m. Saturday and Northeastern JC at 1 p.m.