Whitney Shaw compared her Allen Community College volleyball squad to a giant puzzle.
“We’re 99.9 percent there,” the Red Devil head coach said. “We had stretches where we did really good stuff.”
Alas, a few untimely lulls did in the Red Devils in a 3-1 loss to visiting Kansas City Kansas Community College.
The loss drops ACC to 1-3 in Jayhawk Conference play and 2-3 overall.
“We fought hard,” Shaw said. “I’m not disappointed. It’s just a matter of putting the whole picture together.”
Kansas City followed a familiar pattern in winning each of its three sets, in the first, second and fourth games.
Leading 19-17 in the first set, the Blue Devils ended the drama by rallying for six straight points.
The second set was a heartbreaker for Allen. A costly error at the net cost ACC a point with the score tied 22-22. Kansas City took full advantage, winning the next two points and the set.
“Kind of switched our offense the first set, to see if anything else would work,” Shaw said. “And in the third set, I said, ‘Let’s shake it up a bit and see if we could get something else done.’”
Shake things up indeed. Red Devil outside hitters Adriana Santiago and Ashlynn Aikins found their respective grooves, with each pounding home crucial kills down the stretch.
It was Allen’s turn to break open a close match by winning the last five points and the set, 25-16.
But if the Blue Devils were shaken, they weren’t stirred, in the decisive fourth set.
Kansas City maintained a slim lead throughout before stringing together four straight points twice down the stretch in the 25-19 win.
“They’re not a bad team,” Shaw said of KCK. “They ranked in the top 20 in the nation. That’s what you get with the Jayhawk Conference. It’s tough every time you step on the floor.”
Santiago led ACC with 14 kills, followed by Aikins with 12.
