It was a clash between two ILSportsWire coverage areas Tuesday night, with Pawnee traveling to take on Mt. Pulaski in a matchup between two evenly matched teams looking for a much-needed victory.
Mt. Pulaski came out strong, taking the opening set 25-17 and putting Pawnee behind early.
But the Indians responded.
Led by Ashlyne Cobb, Pawnee battled back to take the second set 25-23 before finishing the comeback with a thrilling 26-24 victory in the third set.
Cobb finished the night with nine kills, helping Pawnee overcome a difficult stretch and earn one of its biggest wins of the season.
“We haven’t been doing good in the past few games,” Cobb said. “This is a really good hype for us, and I would say this is one of our best games of the season so far.”
The comeback was fueled by Pawnee’s effort and chemistry. Cobb emphasized the importance of the team supporting one another throughout the match.
“We’re all on each other’s backs, we support each other, and we trust each other so much,” Cobb said. “You can tell on the court when we’re playing.”
Head coach Sarah Bingenheimer said the victory was the result of what Pawnee had been working toward during its recent stretch.
“This is a turnaround right here,” Bingenheimer said. “This is what we’ve been working for the past couple weeks. We’ve been talking about grit, fight, fighting for every single point, not letting anything drop. They did it. It clicked.”
Bingenheimer also credited her team for winning the mental battle and staying composed when the match tightened.
“We’ve got to fight the mental battle first,” Bingenheimer said. “You’ve got to believe in yourselves and trust your teammates. That’s step one.”
For Pawnee, the win was about more than just the final score. The Indians showed resilience, fighting through a first-set loss and finding a way to close out two extremely tight sets.
Bingenheimer pointed to Cobb as an important leader for the team, particularly in close matches.
“She’s an all-around go-to player for us on the court,” Bingenheimer said. “She leads by example. She’s going to go out there with fight. She’s going to go out with energy, and that’s contagious.”
Despite the loss, Mt. Pulaski saw strong performances from Eva Leonard and Addison Copeland. Leonard finished with 16 digs, while Copeland added seven kills for the Hilltoppers.
Pawnee improves to 4-8 on the season and will look to build on the momentum Wednesday when the Indians travel to take on Mt. Olive.
Mt. Pulaski falls to 5-14 and will look to bounce back Wednesday against Rochester.
