The Lady Panthers trailed in both sets by as many as four points before pushing past the Lady Trojans to pick up their sixth win of the season.
“We faced a scrappy Mendota team who has some big attackers, but we were able to match that with some offensive firepower of our own,” said EP coach Rachel Bramm.
In the opening set EP trailed 7-2 early before tying the set at 11 with a 4-0 run. The Lady Panthers grabbed a 13-12 lead and took 4 of the last 5 points of the set to get the 25-20 win.
The second set played out much like the first with EP trailing 10-7 early. The Panthers served their way back into the contest collecting 4 straight points, including an ace to make it 13-11 EP.
Mendota rallied to go up 17-15 but the home team answered for a 19-18 lead, forcing Mendota into a timeout. Alaina Frank then showed her power at the net as she slammed home three straight points to cap off a 6-0 EP run for a 22-18 EP lead. The Lady Panthers took care of business the rest of the set to secure a 25-20 win.
“Our squad finished the night with a season-high hitting percentage of 0.313 and six different players tallying kills in the match. But of course, none of the offensive opportunities happen without the tireless defensive efforts of our back row,” added Bramm.
EP Stats
Alaina Frank: 12 kills (0.500), 8 digs, 1 ace
Kayler Pritchard: 5 kills (0.714), 1 block
Zoey Stuart: 4 kills, 2 digs, 1 block
Lia Milem: 23 assists, 6 digs, 1 block
The second year Lady Panther coach also praised the environment in the gym. “Tonight was such a fantastic well-rounded effort all around, including those both on and off of the court. Our crowd and bench were absolutely electric, which helped build the energy that carried us through to the end. We’re looking forward to using the momentum gained from tonight’s performance to help us face Rock Falls on Thursday.”
EP 6-3 (2-0) will host Rock Falls, 3-3, on Thursday.
