The Allen Red Devils’ volleyball season came to an end after a sweep by No. 1 ranked Cowley County in the opening round of the NJCAA regional tournament Wednesday.
The Red Devils fell 25-19, 25-13 and 25-18. The contest was much closer than when they faced off in the regular season finale.
Freshman outside hitter Lauren Brummet had a team-leading 12 kills, followed by sophomore middle hitter Chloe Curl with six. Freshman outside hitter Baylee Belt, sophomore middle blocker Laurel “Grace” Larimore and freshman outside hitter Alissa Hadzic had two kills each. Freshman setter Jaidyn Follis, freshman opposite side hitter Kahena Di Grazia and Curl had one ace apiece.
Defensively, sophomore libero Audrey Peek ended her Red Devil career with a team-leading 11 digs, followed by Belt with nine and sophomore defensive specialist Camila Afonso with six. At the net, Belt had Allen’s only solo block while Hadzic and Curl tied for total blocks with two each.
With the loss, the Red Devils end the season 18-13 overall. Following its October loss to Cowley, Allen finished the season sixth in the Jayhawk Conference at 5-4 with Highland Community College owning the tiebreaker in head-to-head competition.
This season, the Red Devils showed their potential. After knocking off then fourth-ranked Johnson County Community College, Allen rose as high as 14th in the national rankings. Subsequent losses to Highland and arch rival Neosho dropped them out of the top 25. With only six sophomores expected to graduate or transfer, Allen returns the majority of its 17-woman roster. However, finding players to replace Peek, Curl, Larimore, Afonso and injured opposite side hitter Alece Lehrman will not be easy.
