Chargers race away from Illinois Valley after slow start

GALESBURG — The Sandburg volleyball team shrugged off a slow start and went on to sweep Illinois Valley 25-21, 25-10, 25-10 in an Arrowhead Conference match Tuesday at John Lewis Gym.

The Chargers (27-6, 6-2) rallied from a seven-point deficit in the first set and never looked back against the Eagles. Trailing 18-11, Sandburg won 14 of the final 17 points to sneak away with the first set. Grace Vyhnanek started the late push with a kills, and Taylor Wagner had four of her team-leading 13 kills in the run.

The Chargers hit just .081 with 10 errors in the first set before hitting .333 in the second and .474 in the third with just seven total errors in the last two sets.

Leading 10-9 in the second, Sandburg had runs of 5-0 and 10-0 to run away with the set. A 7-0 third-set run on Abigail Shaffer's serve gave the Chargers a 13-5 lead as they completed the sweep.

Wagner hit .550 on her 13 kills and now has 420 kills for the season, good for second in NJCAA Division II. Middle blocker Ayla Cannon had a dozen kills for the Chargers on a .292 hitting percentage.

Setter Grace Vyhnanek had 30 assists in the win and has 1,019 on the season, 105 more than the second-ranked player in the country.

Libero Madeline Mooney had three of Sandburg's seven aces and picked up a team-leading 17 digs, pushing her into first place nationally this season with 687. Sophomore Natalie Burden (12) and freshman Abigail Shaffer (10) also reached double figures in digs for the Chargers.

Olivia Falborg recorded both of the Chargers' blocks in the win.

UP NEXT
Friday at Madison Triangular: 1 p.m. vs. Milwaukee Tech and 3 p.m. vs. Madison

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