GALESBURG — The Carl Sandburg College volleyball team picked up its third straight sweep with a 25-11, 25-21, 25-20 Arrowhead Conference victory over Illinois Valley on Tuesday night at John M. Lewis Gymnasium.
The Chargers evened their record at 5-5 while moving above .500 in the conference, at 2-1.
Josalyn Owens (Lincoln, Ill./Lincoln) and Hannah Thompson (Blandinsville, Ill./West Prairie) each had nine kills to lead Sandburg, and Jordan Price (Fulton, Ill./Fulton) added eight for the Chargers.
Camerin Huizenga (Fulton, Ill./Fulton) had a team-best 18 assists for the Chargers, and sophomore Emma Derry (Augusta, Ill./Southeastern) tallied 15. Libero Adre Vetter (Emden, Ill./Hartsburg-Emden) notched 11 digs, and freshman Haley Stevenson (Galesburg, Ill./Galesburg) picked up nine.
Sandburg dominated the opening set, using a 9-1 push to take an early 11-4 lead. Tied at 19 in the second, the Chargers took six of the next eight, with Price racking up two kills and an ace during the stretch.
The Eagles (2-9, 0-3) took a 15-14 lead in the third before the Chargers won seven of eight to go up 21-16. IVCC got within 22-20 before Sandburg closed it out with three straight points, including an ace from Stevenson on match point.
“We weren’t our sharpest after the first set, but we took advantage of some mistakes from them and closed it out when we needed to,” Chargers coach Todd Winkler said. “We started out playing like the team we can be, but we need to maintain that intensity throughout.”
The Chargers will play six matches Friday-Saturday at the Waubonsee Invite before returning home at 6 p.m. Sept. 19 to face Black Hawk in conference place.
