The Allen Community College Red Devils volleyball team wrapped up the weekend with a trio of victories while on the road for the Open Weekend Tournament Saturday and Sunday in Rockford, Ill.
After opening the tournament with a 3-2 loss to Illinois-based Sauk Valley Community College, the Red Devils swept Lake Michigan College 3-0 and posted a pair of 3-1 victories Sunday over Rock Valley College and Kellogg Community College respectively.
In the opener, Allen took the first set 25-22, fell in the second 25-18, won the third 25-23, fell in the fourth 25-19 and came up short in the fifth 15-10. Outside hitter Baylee Belt had a team-leading 16 kills while fellow outside hitter Lauren Burmmet had a team-leading four aces. Defensively, middle hitter Grace Larimore had a team-leading four blocks and libero Audrey Peek had a team-leading 31 digs.
Lake Michigan found themselves on the wrong end of a three-set blowout and a whipping post for the Red Devils to focus their frustrations. Allen opened the match with a 25-14 blowout, followed by a closer score but a similar outcome 25-21 in the second set and well behind in a 25-18 blowout to wrap up the match.
Belt had the hot hand again in the second match with 17 kills, followed by Brummet and outside hitter Maria Santana with eight each. Middle hitter Chloe Curl had a team-leading two blocks while Peek shined again with a team-leading 25 digs.
Against Rock Valley, the Red Devils saw a bit stiffer competition after taking the match with 25-23, 25-22 and 26-24 victories in the first, second and fourth sets but fell 25-22 in the second set. Belt again had the team lead in kills with 13, followed by Brummet, who also posted the team lead in blocks with two. Peek had a team-leading 29 digs.
Allen wrapped up the weekend with a 3-1 victory over Kellogg, but the score was not as close as the scorebook indicated. After opening the match with a 25-20 win, the Red Devils fell to Kellogg 25-17 in a dramatic turnaround. Kellogg’s win may have been a Pyrrhic victory as the Red Devils went on to rout Kellogg 25-15 and 25-14 to take the match and end the day on a high note.
Curl had a breakout performance with a team-leading 15 kills, followed by Belt with 11. She also had a team-leading four blocks while Peek ended the day with 33 digs.
With the wins, the Red Devils improve to 3-1 on the season. They hope to push their record to 4-1 when they host the Friends University Junior Varsity Wednesday. First serve is 3 p.m.
