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Comets clean up with second VB victory over Vikings

Comets clean up with second VB victory over Vikings
Press photo by John Burbridge
Charles City senior Jennifer Martin hits the floor while making a dig while teammate Alex Litterer (No. 8) looks on during the Comets 3-1 away match victory over Decorah on Tuesday.

By John Burbridge
sports@charlescitypress.com

DECORAH — Usually, when you throw in the towel, it’s a sign up giving up.

There were plenty of towels thrown on Charles City’s side of the net during its Northeast Iowa Conference away volleyball match against Decorah on Tuesday. But they weren’t signs of the Comets giving up.

On the contrary … the towels were needed due to the Comets’ all-out effort in keeping the ball alive while diving on the floor and leaving trails of sweat.

In arguably in one of their better matches of the season, the Comets rallied back from losing the first set (25-18), tying the match with an extended second-set victory (30-28), then finishing strong with subsequent set wins (25-22 and 25-13) for a 3-1 match victory.

It was Charles City’s second victory of the season against Decorah as the Comets defeated the Vikings on Aug. 30 while hosting a season-opening invitational. Charles City improved to 5-9 and 2-2 in the NEIC; Decorah fell to 3-5 and 0-2.

Aside from the start of the first set, the Comets didn’t own a lead until late in the second set. The turnaround started when Charles City sophomore Rachel Chambers pounded in two straight jump serves to tie the second set at 18-18.

When Chambers connects on these serves and manages to put them in play, they’re virtually unreturnable as they have the velocity of a fastball and the movement of a knuckleball.

After a series of long volleys and alternating “ad-ins”, a service point by Sarah Mitchell finally ended the second set.

Two left-handed aces from Comet senior Jennifer Martin, and a Mitchell-to-Marissa Daniels kill helped put Charles City up 18-13 in the third set. Decorah rallied to pull within 2 (24-22), but a diving dig along the back row by Comet senior Lexi Vance bounded over the net and was mishandled by the Vikings for the set’s final point.

Vance later produced nine-straight service points in the fourth set to put Charles City up 17-6, and a pair of back-to-back aces from Alex Litterer helped put the set and match away.

The Comets will be back in action on Saturday at an invitational hosted by Dike-New Hartford.

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