Panthers pull out win at Bellevue

     Monticello made a pair of comebacks, then pulled out a fifth-set win to come away with a 3-2 volleyball victory in the River Valley Conference opener Sept. 3 at Bellevue.

     The Panthers won 25-18, 12-25, 25-22, 19-25, 15-10.

     Monticello (2-2) trailed by five points or more in both the first and third sets, but won both. After Bellevue tied the match by winning the fourth set, the Panthers consistently held the lead in the deciding set.

     “It is so important to win a close match early in the season,” Monticello coach Stacie Breitbach said. “The girls now know what it is like to have that pressure on them, and that they have the skills to pull out a big win.”

     Tori McDonald had 24 assists, and Mallory Steiner had 20, leading to an attack that produced 52 kills, including 16 by Emma Hynick.

     Defensively, the team had 58 digs, led by DeLainy Fellinger with 20, Steiner with 13 and McDonald with 10. Steiner also served three aces, and Keziah McQuillen had two.

     “I like how balanced our offense is, and that all hitters swing aggressively,” Breitbach said.

Sept. 3

Monticello 3, Bellevue 2

MONTICELLO                            Kl     Bl   Dg   Ac

DeLainy Fellinger                         0      0    20     0

Emma Hynick                             16      1      4      0

Tori McDonald                              8      1    10      0

Bronwyn Hodge                           8      2      0      0

Beka Prull                                    8      0      4      1

Mallory Steiner                            1      0   13      3

Madison Butterworth                   6      1      1      0

Keziah McQuillen                        5      0      5      2

Jordan Fangmann                       0      0      1      0

Jaelyn Aitchison                          0      0      0      0

Totals                                         52     5    58     6

Assists – McDonald 24, Steiner 20,

Fellinger 4, Hynick 1, Aitchison 1,

McQuillen 1.

Serving leaders – Prull 13-13,

Fellinger 15-16, McQuillen 19-21.

Set scores

Monticello                   25   12   25   19   15

Bellevue                     18   25   22   25   10