Badgers upset bid comes up short against No. 6 Odessa College

Coming off a difficult 3-0 loss to Midland College the previous Saturday, the Badger volleyball team faced off with one of the top teams in the country in sixth-ranked Odessa College on Sept. 20 at the FirstBank Southwest Center.

Amarillo College's performance on Wednesday suggested that when it all comes together on the court, the Badgers have the potential to compete with the best programs NJCAA Division I has to offer.

AC rallied from a nine-point deficit (22-13) in set one and a seven-point disadvantage is set three (22-15) to force down-to-the-wire finishes in both games. Odessa College prevailed in both sets and overcame a 12-6 Badger lead in set two to escape with a three-set victory (26-24, 27-25, 25-23).

Badger assistant coach Meagan Ellis, who was filling in as the head coach for the match due to an illness of Scott Sandel, said that the team's selfless mindset was the primary component of their success against the Wranglers.

"We were playing for our teammates and not ourselves. Our effort was astonishingly better," Ellis said. "They made a decision before the game that they were going to play hard for every ball and that mindset was night-and-day different from most games we played so far."

Amarillo College displayed a well-rounded offensive attack against the vertically inclined Wranglers, who have five players that are 6-foot or taller and 11 athletes that are at least 5-foot-10.

Sophomore Jaron McAden was the top offensive performance with a team-best 10 kills via a team-high .368 hitting percentage.

Fellow sophomore Addison McLain was inserted into the starting lineup ensuing the injury of freshman Jorja Wilson against Midland College and made the most of her opportunity. The Amarillo High graduate recorded a career-high eight kills and added two blocks in Wednesday's defeat.

Dumas High product and sophomore transfer Abree Elsheimer finished the match with her second-highest kill total (7) this season via a .154 hitting percentage.

Sophomore captain Madison Kellogg tied her fourth-highest kill total of the season with nine in the loss.

Freshman libero Rachel Russell recorded a career-high 25 digs while sophomore setter Carli Colbert dished out a team-high 28 assists – the second-highest total of a three-set match in her career.

In set one, four Badgers tallied kills in their 11-2 run, which tied the match at 24-24. McAden, Elsheimer, and Kellogg each had two kills during the run. McLain added a back-to-back block and kill to tie the match at 24 all.

A McAden kill, Skylar Rivers service ace, and a Kellogg kill gave the Badgers a 3-0 lead to begin set two. Amarillo College built their lead to 12-6 with three McLain kills, one kill apiece by Kellogg and Elsheimer, and an ace by Taylor Irving.

Odessa College tied the second set at 14-14 and nine lead changes ensued before the Wranglers closed out the set with a pair of kills.

Odessa College jumped out to a 9-3 advantage is set three and maintained a lead the entire game.

The Badgers went on an 8-2 run in the latter stage of the final set, closing a 22-15 deficit to 24-23.

A McAden kill and block, a Rivers ace, and a kill by Kellogg propelled the run that ended with a kill by Odessa College to close out the match.