Pekin ends drought against Mediapolis

Ken Hutchinson has been coaching Pekin volleyball for 11 years. In that time-frame he had never beaten Mediapolis. That changed when the Panthers hosted the offensive juggernaut on Thursday, Sept. 7, sweeping them in three sets.

The first set went back and forth, each side recording scoring spurts. Pekin ended the set on a high note and ended up winning by eight points, 25-17.

The second set was much closer, Mediapolis played with the lead for a bit before Pekin countered. Some key plays made by the Panthers to go along with some mistakes by Mediapolis resulted in a 25-23 score.

The final set woke up Mediapolis and they started playing with a vengeance. The opposing crowd finally had something to cheer about, hoping it would be their team on the winning side at the end of the night. It looked possible for most of the third set, as Mediapolis took a commanding 22-12 lead.

Hoping to salvage the set and get some momentum back heading into the fourth, Pekin started to claw back. Whitney Johnson, libero for Pekin, served for what seemed to be an eternity, continuing to get the ball over the net.

The lead diminished, little by little, and the momentum began to swing in Pekin's favor again. They tied the score at 22 before losing the next point. Mediapolis needed two more points to win the set, but failed to do so.

"We run drills all the time in practice that are nearly no-win situations," Hutchinson said. "At that point, I just wanted to see who would compete and who would quit."

Both sides knew the importance of winning the third set, whether it be finishing the match or extending it. Fans from both sides were at their peak, especially during rallies at crucial moments. Pekin completed the unthinkable, winning the set 25-23 and sweeping Mediapolis.

A slew of Panthers played at their best to get the win in front of their home crowd.

Haley and Maci Gambell combined for 25 of Pekin's 55 digs, 12 of the team's 24 assists and 17 of the team's 30 kills. On the defensive side of the ball, Faith Oostra and Ellie Ledger each had three blocks at the net. The two also combined for 10 kills.

Johnson, who served during Pekin's third set rally, finished the night missing one of her 16 serves.

Paige Winn played for the first time in over two weeks, after injuring her thumb. Though only playing sparingly, she provided a spark off the bench with two blocks.

"Winning that last set was hugely important," Hutchinson said. "For the first time, we were up to the point I thought we could be at this point in the season, potential wise."

Pekin is now 3-0 in conference play, and has won five of their last six matches, the lone loss coming at the hands of the Savages. For Mediapolis, it was their first conference loss in a decade.

"We had to play our best to win," Hutchinson said. "I can't remember the last time we beat them."

The Panthers have a week break to collect themselves and practice on tweaking their game, before travelling to play Wapello. Pekin won't return to play on their home-court until Sept. 28.