CRYSTAL LAKE, Ill. – No. 1 Parkland College Volleyball (25-1) had no problem sweeping Bryant and Stratton College (Wis.) (1-8) in match one on Sunday. Match two was a top-20 nail-biter, however, as the Cobras overcame a 1-2 deficit, winning the fourth and fifth sets against No. 11 McHenry County College (8-1) and handing the host Scots their first loss of the season.
 
Up next, Parkland plays two matches in Chicagoland on Saturday, March 20. At 11:00 am, the Cobras will face the Olivet Nazarene University JV squad in Bourbonnais. Then, at 4:00 pm, the team will play Waubonsee CC in Sugar Grove.
 
 
No. 1 Parkland- 3,  Bryant and Stratton - 0  (25-14, 25-16, 25-13)
 
Sophie Young (32 assists, 6 digs, 3 blocks) initiated a prolific attack that was led by Hailey Sperling (11 kills), Brittney Litton (8 kills, 16 digs, 2 blocks), and Jayden Sortor (7 kills, 3 blocks).
 
Litton keyed a back line the gathered 55 digs, with support from Reilly Swierbut (13 digs, 3 aces), Ella Godsell (8 digs, 2 aces), and Sasha Zuckerman (7 digs).
 
Swierbut and Godsell combined for 5 aces, and Kanay Benschneider (4 kills, 4 blocks) led the Cobras defending the net.
 
 
No. 1 Parkland- 3,  No. 11 McHenry County- 2  (25-27, 25-16, 24-26, 25-20, 15-13)
 
In set one, the score was tied, 11-11, when McHenry County scored 4 straight. Parkland regained its composure and pulled even at 20-20. It was again knotted at 24 and then at 25, but the Scots took 2 in a row and put the Cobras down, 0-1.
 
In set two, Parkland jumped out to a 10-4 lead and maintained that margin throughout. At 20-14, the Cobras won 5 of the final 7 points for the win.
 
Set three was tight all the way. McHenry County had a 4-point lead, 4-8, while Parkland held 2-point leads at 14-12 and 22-20. The final tie was 24-24, when the Scots scored 2 straight for a 2-0 lead in the match.
 
In set four, the Cobras trailed 9-13 but rallied to win, 25-20, and even the match, 2-2.
 
Parkland took a 7-4 lead in the deciding set and never let it go. McHenry County tied things up at 7, 9, 11, and 12, but the Cobras won 3 of the final 4 points to win the set, 15-13, and match, 3-2.
 
Summerlyn Smith (49 assists, 14 digs, 2 aces, 2 blocks) produced her seventh double-double, and fourth in a row, while setting up the Cobras' offense.
 
Halle Everett (24 kills, 12 digs) smashed a career-high 24 kills en route to her eleventh double-double of the season. Other top performers on offense included Arika Richardson (14 kills, 6 digs), Hailey Sperling (11 kills, 5 digs), and Jayden Sortor (8 kills, 5 digs, 4 blocks). Reilly Swierbut chipped in 2 aces.
 
On the defensive side, Kayla Brandon (21 digs, 3 aces) and Isabella Classen (21 digs) split 42 digs, while Brittney Litton (15 digs), Smith, and Everett were major contributors.
 
Sortor, Smith, and Katie Kaiser (2 blocks) produced the bulk of Parkland's total of 6 team blocks.