Kirkwood Volleyball

No. 9 Eagles claim regional title

FORT DODGE - The Kirkwood Eagles got sweet revenge against Iowa Central in the championship match of the regional volleyball tournament Sunday afternoon in Fort Dodge.

The ninth-ranked Eagles clipped the seventh-ranked Tritons in five sets to claim the regional title, lifting Kirkwood to within one victory of qualifying for the national tournament.

Coach Jill Williams and the Eagles will host a two-team district tournament on Sunday, Nov. 4, with the victor advancing to the NJCAA Division II national tournament in Charleston, W.Va., from Nov. 15-17.

Iowa Central, the No. 1 seed in the regional, trimmed the Eagles in five sets when they met in a conference affair in Fort Dodge on Oct. 10, with the Tritons winning the fifth and final set 19-17 in overtime.

This time, Kirkwood took control in the fifth set with a 15-8 verdict to win the regional title.

Iowa Central won the first set Sunday, 32-30, in overtime, but the Eagles never blinked and captured the next two sets, 25-17 and 25-23, to grab a 2-1 lead. Iowa Central tied the match with a 25-22 victory in the fourth set, but Kirkwood controlled the fifth set for the win.

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Eagles earn spot in regional finals

FORT DODGE - The ninth-ranked Kirkwood Eagles will face seventh-ranked Iowa Central in the championship match of the NJCAA XI-A regional volleyball tournament Sunday in Fort Dodge.

The Eagles edged DMACC, 3-2, in the regional semifinals Saturday by winning the fifth set, 15-13. Iowa Central advanced with a 3-0 sweep of Southeastern in the semifinals.

The championship match between Kirkwood (30-8) and Iowa Central (28-9) is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.

Kirkwood gained a measure of revenge against DMACC in the semifinals by winning 13-25, 25-16, 25-20, 22-25, 15-13. The Bears defeated Kirkwood in an ICCAC conference match, 3-1, on Aug. 29.

Kirkwood was seeded No. 5 in the regional tournament and DMACC was seeded No. 4, so the victory by Kirkwood was considered a mild upset.

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No. 9 Eagles drop 5-set match

NORFOLK, Neb. - The Kirkwood women's volleyball team lost to Northeast Community College in five sets Tuesday night, 17-25, 25-21, 20-25, 25-14, 15-13, in an ICCAC conference match on the road.

The ninth-ranked Eagles enjoyed a 2-1 lead after three sets, but the Eagles were not able to finish the job in the final match of the regular season.

Kirkwood fell to 29-8 overall and 5-4 in the conference. The Eagles will be the No. 5 seed for the regional tournament this Saturday and Sunday.

Northeast raised its records to 17-13 overall and 8-1 in the league.

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No. 13 Eagles enjoy Sophomore Night

The Kirkwood women's volleyball team had a simple goal on Sophomore Night at Johnson Hall Wednesday.

Collect an impressive victory, give everyone a chance to play and get ready for the postseason tournament next week.

Mission accomplished.

The 13th-ranked Eagles rolled by Ellsworth, 25-10, 25-13, 25-12, on a night when their graduating sophomores got to take center stage with their parents and family.

"We had some fun with it and I thought we played pretty good volleyball," said Coach Jill Williams.

The Eagles raised their records to 29-7 overall and 5-3 in the ICCAC Conference with one match left in the regular season.

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