The Lincoln College volleyball season came to an end on Wednesday evening with a three set loss to Parkland College. Parkland was the top seed in Region 24-A and they defeated the #4 seed Lady Lynx 25-6, 25-13, 25-11. Lincoln finishes the season with a record of 27 wins and 17 losses.

LC totals:

Stephanie Dziengel 4 set assists

Gretchen Rieger 4 kills, 10 digs

Chelsea Barr 5 digs

Jenna Luck 7 kills, 8 digs, 4 points

LC Coach Mark Tippett: I was not disappointed in our effort tonight, but we just ran into a very strong team that did not make any mistakes. We battled hard on every point and despite the lopsided scores I did not sense that we ever got down on each other or gave up. Parkland's height advantage and quickness were too much for us tonight and they showed that they deserved the #1 ranking. It's always tough to end your season with a loss, but I was proud of the way our players represented themselves and our school. Overall, I feel as though we had another successful season and I enjoyed working with this group of players a great deal.

The Lincoln College volleyball team began regional play with a hard fought 5 set victory over visiting Springfield College. The Lady Lynx were the number four seed in Region 24 A which meant they had earned the right to host the fifth seeded Lady Bulldogs from SCI. LC started off the match by jumping out to a 9-2 lead, but an abundance of Lincoln serving errors allowed Springfield to work its way back into the game and eventually pull off a 26-24 victory. Set two was just as dramatic with Lincoln coming from three points down late in the set win 27-25. LC was able to keep the momentum in set three to win 25-20. In set four Lincoln held a five point advantage at 21-16, but were unable to close out the match as SCI came from behind to win 26-24 and force a deciding set to 15. With the season on the line, LC came out fighting and never trailed in the final set to win 15-7. LC improved their record to 27-16. Lincoln will travel to Parkland College on Wednesday evening to take on the top seeded Cobras at 6:00 pm.

LC totals:

Kristen Mahoney 10 kills, 4 blocks, 9 points

Lara Dawson 8 kills, 3 blocks

Stephanie Dziengel 16 set assists, 8 points, 8 digs

Gretchen Rieger 14 kills, 18 digs, 4 points

Chelsea Barr 26 digs, 10 points

Jenna Luck 7 kills, 8 digs, 4 points

Rhiannon Speckhart 7 digs, 6 points

Priscilla Craig 4 kills

Melanie Herbeck 20 set assists, 9 points

Celine Belcher 5 kills

LC Coach Mark Tippett: Tonight's match was a stuggle from start to finish. SCI played very well defensively which put a lot of pressure on our offense to execute. The loss in set one was quite frustrating because we let them have way too many easy points off of our missed serves. We managed to cut down on the unforced errors to regain control of the match, but SCI showed a lot of heart by coming back on us the way they did in set 4. Unfortunately for them, their setter injured her knee late in that set and they did not have the same offensive punch after she went down. We took care of business in set five and earned the chance to go to Parkland and try to pull off an upset. I believe in our team, and I feel confident that we are up to the challenge.

The Lincoln College volleyball team finished their regular season schedule on Saturday with two victories. LC participated in a triangular match at Black Hawk East. The Lady Lynx got off to a fast start by defeating South Suburban College 25-11, 25-7, 25-18 then finished the day with a thrilling 5 set match against host Black Hawk East. In the Black Hawk match, Lincoln overcame an early set one deficit to win 25-20. The next two sets went to BHE by scores of 25-21 and 25-16. LC regrouped in set four to win 25-18 and force a deciding set to 15 which the Lady Lynx rallied to win 15-10. Lincoln finishes the regular season with a record of 26-16. The team will get a week off to prepare for the District 24 regional tournament which begins play on November 3rd.

LC totals:

• Kristen Mahoney 26 kills, 9 blocks, 20 points
• Lara Dawson 19 kills, 8 blocks, 10 points
• Stephanie Dziengel 33 set assists, 12 points, 3 kills
• Gretchen Rieger 15 kills, 22 digs, 11 points
• Chelsea Barr 16 digs, 8 points
• Jenna Luck 11 kills, 14 digs, 10 points
• Rhiannon Speckhart 26 digs, 1 KILL
• Priscilla Craig 8 kills, 10 blocks
• Melanie Herbeck 26 set assists, 5 digs
• Celine Belcher 4 kills, 6 digs

LC Coach Mark Tippett: Our team has not faired well in Saturday matches this year, but we managed to finish the regular season with a very strong Saturday performance. The first match against SSC was fun because we were able to get everyone on the court and they all contributed to the win. The BHE match was entertaining from start to finish. Our opponents came out fired up and it took us a few points to match their intensity, but I was happy with the way we came back on them. Sets two and three were hard fought and saw several lead changes. I flipped our rotation a bit in set four to create some favorable matchups for us and I think it helped swing the momentum back in our favor. Our blockers were able to shut down their outside attack which was something that cost us a lot of points earlier in the match. Our hitters showed patience on offense and started finding holes rather than pounding the ball into the block. We got on a roll in set four and were able to keep it going long enough to pull out set five and win the match. The team worked hard today and it feels great to finish out our schedule on such a positive note.

Lincoln College traveled to Lincoln Land Community College for their final Mid West Athletic Conference match of the year and lost 25-15, 25-23, 26-28, 25-16. Both teams wore pink uniforms and all proceeds from the match were donated to breast cancer research. Lincoln College finished their conference season with a record of 4-3 and their overall record stands at 24-16. The Lady Lynx will finish out their regular season with a tri match at Black Hawk East on Saturday.

LC totals:

• Gretchen Rieger 14 kills, 10 digs
• Kristen Mahoney 7 kills, 2 blocks, 7 points
• Stephanie Dziengel 18 set assists, 11 points
• Chelsea Barr 13 digs
• Jenna Luck 5 kills, 4 digs
• Rhiannon Speckhart 10 digs
• Priscilla Craig 5 kills, 3 blocks
• Melanie Herbeck 11 set assists

LC Coach Mark Tippett: I can honestly say that this was the first time all season that I have been disappointed in our effort. We just didn't play very well on defense and our offensive attack was too predictable. The only bright spots were that we did not make any service errors and we mounted a fabulous comeback to win set three. We were down 24-17 but were able to run off seven points in a row to tie the score and eventually pushed ahead to take the set. The win should have fired us up, but instead we went right back to the sluggish style of play that got us in trouble in the first place and quickly got behind in set four. I know that we are a better team than what we showed tonight.

The Lincoln College volleyball team honored the five members of their sophomore class prior to their final home match of the regular season. The team then went on to defeat the Millikin University JV team in four sets. LC jumped out to a big lead in set one, but let it slip away and eventually fell to the visitors 27-25. The Lady Lynx did not let the disappointment of dropping set one get them down as they bounced back to take the next three sets 25-22, 25-21, 25-16. Lincoln is now 24-15 on the season and they finished the regular season with a 9-3 record at home.

LC totals:

• (Sophomore) Kristen Mahoney 11 kills, 3 blocks, 5 points
• (Sophomore) Stephanie Dziengel 17 set assists, 16 points, 7 digs
• (Sophomore) Jenna Luck 4 kills, 4 digs, 7 points
• (Sophomore) Rhiannon Speckhart 15 digs, 4 points
• (Sophomore) Priscilla Craig 5 kills, 3 blocks
• Gretchen Rieger 8 kills, 10 points, 11 digs
• Melanie Herbeck 13 set assists, 16 points, 10 digs
• Lara Dawson 5 kills, 2 blocks
• Celine Belcher 4 kills, 2 blocks
• Chelsea Barr 13 digs

LC Coach Mark Tippett: The five sophomores on our team have been a pleasure to work with. They have been outstanding performers on the court and in the classroom. Tonight's win was a great victory for them and for our entire team. Millikin made an incredible comeback to win set one, but I was proud of the way our players handled the setback. They stayed calm and continued to believe in themselves. The ability to stay focused after tough losses has been a positive trait our team has displayed all season long. It can be frustrating when we get ourselves into these situations, but it is also a confidence boost when we work our way out of such trouble.

Note: Lincoln College will contribute all of the funds raised from last night's match to breast cancer research. LC will participate in another fund raising event on Thursday evening when they participate in a 6:00 pm match at Lincoln Land College. Both teams will wear pink uniforms and will again donate all proceeds to breast cancer research.

Lincoln College defeated Joliet Junior College in the opening match of their home triangular on Saturday, but the Lady Lynx fell to Kaskaskia College in the afternoon. LC started out strong with a 25-14 first set victory over JJC. The visitors rebounded to take set two 25-16. LC returned to form in sets three and four by winning 25-14, 25-14. That final score was repeated once again in the opening set of Lincoln's match with Kaskaskia College as LC again won the opener 25-14. Kaskakia got off to a fast start in set two, but LC battled back and briefly held the lead at 19-18. KC was able to stop Lincoln's charge and managed to take the set 25-23. LC was unable to recover in sets three and four as they lost by scores of 25-21, 25-21. Lincoln's record stands at 23-15. The Lady Lynx are set for their final home match of the regular season on Tuesday evening. The team will honor their Sophomore class prior to the 6:00 pm match against the Millikin University JV team.

LC totals:

• Kristen Mahoney 26 kills, 5 blocks, 2 set assists
• Gretchen Rieger 25 kills, 34 points, 22 digs
• Chelsea Barr 23 digs, 6 points
• Stephanie Dziengel 25 set assists, 12 points, 11 digs
• Melanie Herbeck 25 set assists, 9 points
• Courtney Ebner 10 kills, 4 blocks
• Jenna Luck 12 kills, 9 digs
• Rhiannon Speckhart 18 digs, 3 points
• Kaylah Murphy 10 digs, 9 points

LC Coach Mark Tippett: We played a solid match against Joliet. The scores may not reflect it, but they had a good team. In set two they earned the win fair and square. The rest of the match we were just so consistent in all aspects of the game that they were not able to get any momentum going. We started out in the same fashon against KC, but they turned the tables on us by cutting down on their hitting errors and were able to wear us down. There were no obvious weak spots in our game, they just found a way to win more volleys than we did. It would have been nice to take both matches, but overall we played well most of the day and I was not disappointed in our effort.

Note: KCC defeated JJC in the their match 3 sets to 2

The Lincoln College Volleyball team stepped back in time to visit the 1980's and returned with a three set victory over visiting Carl Sandburg College. The Lady Lynx were totally awesome in the first set and earned a 25-11 win. In set two LC jumped out to a radical lead but Sandburg made a gnarly comeback to pull within two points before falling 25-21. Set three turned out to be a Thriller as Lincoln denied CSC set point at 25-26 then found the Eye of the Tiger to win the set 28-26. Lincoln improved their overall record to 22-14.

LC stats:

• Kristen Mahoney 7 kills, 3 blocks, 19 points
• Chelsea Barr 8 digs, 3 points
• Stephanie Dziengel 8 set assists, 4 points, 4 digs
• Courtney Ebner 4 kills, 4 blocks
• Gretchen Rieger 2 kills, 10 points
• Jenna Luck 3 kills, 1 block
• Rhiannon Speckhart 5 digs, 2 points
• Priscilla Craig 3 kills, 3 digs

LC Coach Mark Tippett: I was pleased with the intesity we brought to the court tonight. We passed well and our quick attacks on offense kept Sandbug off balance. We were able to control the tempo of the game most of the night. Letting leads slip away is not a good habit to get into, but we were able to make the plays when we needed to in order to win the match in three sets. The team had a lot of fun with 80's night and it made for an entertaining start to our final home stand of the season.

LC hosts a tri match on Saturday. LC faces Joliet CC at 10:00 am, JCC plays Kaskaskia at noon followed by LC vs. KCC at 2:00 pm.

Lincoln College fell to 4-2 in MWAC play with a five set loss to John Wood College. The Lady Lynx lost 19-25, 25-23, 16-25, 25-22, 15-8. LC is now 21-14 on the season.

LC stats:

• Chelsea Barr 32 digs, 10 points
• Melanie Herbeck 14 points, 17 set assists
• Stephanie Dziengel 19 set assists, 6 points
• Courtney Ebner 10 kills, 5 blocks
• Gretchen Rieger 8 kills, 6 points
• Jenna Luck 7 kills, 13 digs
• Lara Dawson 6 kills, 3 blocks
• Kristen Mahoney 5 kills, 7 blocks

LC Coach Mark Tippett: We played well tonight, but unfortunately we were unable to keep positive momentum going long enough to win the match. Our defense was strong, but at times our serve reception was poor. The frustrating part is that the sets we won were decisive victories and, with the exception of set five, the ones we lost could have gone either way. We never gave up and fought hard until the end, so I was proud of the effort.

LC starts a four match home stand on Thursday with a 6 :00 pm match against Carl Sandburg College. The match against CSC has been designated 80’s night.

The Lincoln College volleyball team moved their record in Mid West Athletic conference play to 4-1 with a 3 set victory over Danville Area Community College. The Lady Lynx traveled to Danville and won by scores of 25-20, 25-16, 25-17. LC heads into their Fall Break with a record of 21-13.

LC Stats:

• MELANIE HERBECK 13 set assists, 4 digs
• Kristen Mahoney 6 kills, 3 blocks, 9 points
• Courtney Ebner 8 kills, 1 block
• Lara Dawson 5 kills
• Stephanie Dziengel 12 set assists, 13 points
• Chelsea Barr 5 points, 6 digs
• Gretchen Rieger 7 kills, 3 aces
• Jenna Luck 3 kills, 4 points
• Priscilla Craig 4 digs

LC Coach Mark Tippett: We talked a lot in practice about staying focused for this game because of the upcoming Fall Break. I have had teams in the past who struggled in matches leading up to the break because they were distracted by the upcoming time off, but this team did not fall into that trap and got the job done. We played a sound match in all aspects of the game tonight. Danville had some tough servers, but our passers were up to the challenge which gave our setters the chance to run the offense smoothly. The best part was that our entire team was able to contributed to the victory.

LC is off until October 14th when they travel to John Wood CC for a 6 pm MWAC match.

Lincoln College dropped two matches in straight sets at the Rend Lake Trimatch on Saturday. LC lost to nationally ranked East Central College (#9) 25-20, 25-20, 25-9. In their second match the Lady Lynx lost to host Rend Lake 25-19, 25-23, 25-23. LC is now 20-13 on the year.

LC Stats:

• Kristen Mahoney 15 kills, 6 blocks
• Courtney Ebner 15 kills, 2 blocks
• Lara Dawson 12 kills, 2 blocks
• Melanie Herbeck 26 set assists, 12 digs
• Stephanie Dziengel 21 set assists, 9 digs
• Chelsea Barr 6 points, 24 digs
• Gretchen Rieger 7 kills, 18 digs
• Celine Belcher 5 kills, 10 digs, 3 points

LC Coach Mark Tippett: We were able to hang in early with East Central, but the speed of their attack wore us down. In set three we did not play very disciplined defense and it got ugly in a hurry. We were still reeling a bit from the ECC loss at the start of our match with Rend Lake. They took advantage of our lack of positive energy to take set one. We made a few adjustments in set two and played much better. The last two sets could have gone either way, but it just wasn't our day. We will have to regroup this week in order to win an important conference match at Danville on Tuesday night.

The Lincoln College volleyball team earned their 20th victory of the season at Kaskaskia Community College. LC took set one 25-20 then fought off five consecutive set point opportunities before dropping set two 27-29. The Lady Lynx regrouped and took the next two sets by scores of 25-22 and 25-19 to win the match. LC will take part in a tri match hosted by Rend Lake College on Saturday. The third team featured in the triangular will be East Central College.

LC Stats:

• Gretchen Rieger 15 kills, 22 digs, 10 points
• Kristen Mahoney 11 kills, 8 points, 8 blocks
• Stephanie Dziengel 28 set assists, 7 digs
• Chelsea Barr 7 points, 33 digs
• Courtney Ebner 9 kills, 6 blocks
• Lara Dawson 7 kills, 4 blocks
• Melanie Herbeck 22 set assists, 6 points
• Celine Belcher 6 kills, 6 digs, 5 points

LC Coach Mark Tippett: We made life tough on ourselves by falling behind early in each set, but we managed to dig ourselves out each time and swing the momentum our way. Our blockers did an outstanding job of adjusting to what KCC's hitters wanted to do then take that part of the court away. The setters spread the ball around effectively and once again our serving was consistent. This win was a true team effort.

LC's overall record stands at 20-11.

Lincoln College dropped their first conference match of the year to Parkland College in four sets. Parkland took game one 25-16. LC made set two more of a contest with a 25-23 loss. Then the Lady Lynx turned the tables on PC by winning set three 25-23. Freshman Gretchen Rieger ran off four points in a row to seal the victory. This was the first set that PC has dropped in conference play this year. Set four was hard fought early on, but eventually Parkland go on a roll that Lincoln could not stop and cruised to a 25-5 victory. LC is now 19-11.

LC Stats:

• Gretchen Rieger 3 kills, 7 digs, 10 points, 4 aces
• Kristen Mahoney 5 kills, 2 points, 1 block
• Stephanie Dziengel 8 set assists, 9 digs, 4 points
• Chelsea Barr 2 points, 9 digs
• Courtney Ebner 3 kills, 1 block
• Priscilla Craig 4 kills

LC Coach Mark Tippett: Parkland has some excellent athletes and they certainly have the tallest front row players we have seen all season. Despite the disadvantage our players were at from a physical standpoint, we were able to play right with them most of the match. We rose to the challenge defensively and our passing in sets two and three was consistent enough for us to sideout effectively. We got off to a bad start in the last set and things kind of fell apart for us, but I was proud of the effort I saw on the court tonight. We showed we can hang right in there with a team that is nationally ranked, and I am confident that if we continue to improve at the rate we are going, we will be a real threat to win our region.

LC will travel south this weekend to play at Kaskaskia College on Friday and participate in a triangular at Rend Lake College on Saturday.

Lincoln College went 2-2 in pool play at the College of DuPage tournament this weekend. Their record was not strong enough to make it out of pool play in this competitive, 10 team tournament. LC dropped their first match to Oakton Community College 21-25, 25-14, 10-15. They rebounded to defeat South Suburban 25-8, 25-17 and Fergus Falls CC 25-22, 25-22. A victory in their final match of pool play with Harper College would have allowed LC to advance, however, HC held off the Lady Lynx 25-20, 25-23. LC is now 19-10 on the year.

LC Tournament Totals:

• Kristen Mahoney 20 kills, 15 points, 6 blocks
• Stephanie Dziengel 33 set assists, 11 digs, 13 points
• Gretchen Rieger 16 kills, 22 digs
• Melanie Herbeck 28 set assists, 8 points
• Chelsea Barr 15 points, 33 digs
• Jenna Luck 14 kills, 13 digs
• Courtney Ebner 14 kills
• Lara Dawson 8 kills
• Priscilla Craig 7 kills

LC Coach Mark Tippett: It's funny how your fate in a tournament can be sealed after the first match of pool play, but that is what happend to us in this tournament. Oakton took advantage of several unforced errors on our part and forced us into winning all the rest of our pool play matches in order to have a shot at advancing. We took care of business in the next two matches, but it put a lot of pressure on our match against Harper. We fought hard, but Harper's defensive intensity wore us down. It seemed as though every point was a long rally and unfortunately they won a few more of them than we did. In the second set we were tied at 20 when we ran out of subs for the first time all season. This put us in a very weak position and HC took advantage of this to win the match. We are now half way through our schedule and overall I am very pleased with how our team is performing. If we continue to improve and learn from our mistakes, I see a lot of success for LC in the second half of the year.

Lincoln College improved its record to 17-8 with a four set victory over visiting Shawnee Community College. The Lady Lynx erased an early 7 point deficit then fought off two game point attempts by Shawnee to take set one 27-25. In set two LC again fell behind early, but they were able to turn things around in time to avoid a repeat of the set one drama, and won 25-17. Set three saw a reversal of fortunes as Lincoln stormed out to an early 8-2 advantage only to see SCC come back to tie the game at 15 then win the set 26-24. Set four was a seesaw battle until LC broke away to win the set and match with a 25-21 victory. Lincoln College is now 3-0 in MWAC play this season.

LC Stats:

• Kristen Mahoney 11 kills, 7 points, 6 blocks
• Gretchen Rieger 7 kills, 11 digs
• Melanie Herbeck 21 set assists, 10 points
• Stephanie Dziengel 16 set assists, 9 digs
• Chelsea Barr 15 points, 8 digs
• Rhiannon Speckhart 13 digs, 7 points
• Jenna Luck 10 kills, 4 digs
• Courtney Ebner 10 kills
• Lara Dawson 5 kills
• Priscilla Craig 4 kills

LC Coach Mark Tippett: If there is one thing our team has proven this year it's that we are not rattled by getting down early in a match. Our players have managed to stay calm in these situations, show confidence in each other, and find ways to get back into position to win. Shawnee had a couple of tough servers who disrupted our passing game effectively, but once we got passed them, we were able to out volley them most of the match. Our middle hitters were aggressive tonight and their success opened up scoring opportunities for the rest of our hitters. The setters kept everyone busy and made smart decisions all night long. We are nearing the half way point in the season and it is wonderful to see that we are continuing to improve our game each time we take the court.

Lincoln will travel to Glen Ellyn, IL this weekend to take part in the 17th annual College of DuPage Chaparral Invitational tournament. The Lady Lynx will attempt to defend their 2007 championship.

Note: This victory moves the current sophomore class into a tie with the class of 2007 for most career victories at Lincoln College with 51.

Lincoln College took second place in the Illinois Valley College Invitational on Saturday. LC went 1-3 during pool play. Despite taking three losses the Lady Lynx played well against tough competition. The team began the day with a three set loss to Harper College 16-25, 25-15, 15-7. The next match versus Vincennes University followed a similar pattern. Lincoln took the first set 25-23 before dropping sets 2 and 3 by scores of 25-18 and 15-8. LC got in the win column and avoided elimination by defeating Illinois Valley College 25-23, 22-25, 15-12. Their final pool play match was a loss to John A. Logan College 25-14, 25-16.

• Kristen Mahoney 26 kills, 14 points
• Gretchen Rieger 25 kills, 37 digs
• Melanie Herbeck 44 set assists, 27 points
• Stephanie Dziengel 43 set assists, 25 points
• Chelsea Barr 43 digs, 5 points
• Jenna Luck 17 kills, 13 digs
• Courtney Ebner 13 kills, 15 blocks
• Lara Dawson 13 kills, 6 blocks

LC Coach Mark Tippett: Saturday mornings have not been good to us this season. We struggled early at the Danville tournament a couple of weeks ago and had a similar experience today. We started out strong in our first two matches only to stall mid way through game two. We barely kept it together long enough to beat IVCC, and after the way we lost to Logan in our final pool play match, I don't think many people would have given us much of a chance against them in the semifinal. However, our players showed a lot of heart and played a fantactic match. Our blockers finally showed up and took controll of the net which gave our defense a better chance to keep volleys going and wear our opponents down. The key to the win was they way our servers were able to disrupt their offense with short serves that created problems for their quick hitters. Beating a team like Logan is a huge victory for us. We took a lot of confidence into the championship match, but Vincennes has a great team and they deserved the win. We may have been a little gassed after playing a total of 14 sets with only one break to get to the final. It was an interesting day to say the least.

LC hosts Shawnee College on Tuesday at 5 p.m. This will be LC's third Mid West Athletic Conference match of the season.

The Lincoln College Volleyball team ran its record to 14-4 with a road victory over the Millikin University Junior Varsity team. LC won in straight sets by scores of 25-18, 25-15, and 25-20.

LC Stats:

• Kristen Mahoney 6 kills, 12 points, 2 aces
• Jenna Luck 6 kills, 8 points
• Gretchen Rieger 4 kills, 12 digs, 7 points
• Stephanie Dziengel 9 set assists, 6 digs, 3 points
• Melanie Herbeck 8 set assists, 4 points
• Priscilla Craig 4 kills, 2 set assists
• Chelsea Barr 10 digs, 2 points
• Celine Belcher 4 kills

LC Coach Mark Tippett: We were solid in all aspects of the game tonight. Our passing was consistent and we were able to dig their attack well which gave our offense a chance to work. The blockers did ther jobs effectively and we only missed one serve the entire match. Millikin has lot of players on thier roster and it seemed as though they had trouble gelling as a unit. Our experience playing together made us a little more comfortable on the court which definitely worked to our advantage.

The Lady Lynx will participate in the Illinois Valley Community College Invitaional tournament on Saturday.

Lincoln College continued its winning ways on the court last night with a four set victory over Lewis & Clark Community College. Lewis & Clark started out strong by taking a 6-1 lead in set one, but the Lady Lynx battled back to even the score at 9. Sophomore libero Rhiannon Speckhart then served 8 points in a row to put LC ahead for good. Lincoln eventually won the set by a score of 25-14. Lewis & Clark bounced back to win the second set 25-18, and had a late lead in set three before LC again took command of the match. This time is was behind the serving on sophomore Kristen Mahoney who ran off 7 points in a row. LC held on to win the set 25-20. In set four Lincoln took advantage of L&C missed serves and hitting errors to earn another 25-20 victory. Lincoln's record now stands at 13-4 on the season and 2-0 in MWAC play this year.

LC Stats:

• Gretchen Rieger 10 kills, 13 digs, 8 points
• Stephanie Dziengel 18 set assists, 8 points
• Kristen Mahoney 9 kills, 3 digs, 6 points
• Rhiannon Speckhart 10 digs, 15 points
• Jenna Luck 7 kills, 7 digs
• Melanie Herbeck 15 set assists, 6 points
• Priscilla Craig 7 kills, 2 digs
• Lara Dawson 4 kills, 2 digs, 2 blocks

LC Coach Mark Tippett: Lewis & Clark came in with a lot of enthusiasm and displayed a very aggressive offense. They have two outstanding hitters and they each have hard serves as well. The key for us was to minimize the damage those two players could cause and take advantage of the rotations when they were not in the front row. Despite the fact that we did not look very sharp offensively, we were able to rally when we neded to in order to find a way to win. Our setters did a nice job of keeping rallies going and giving our hitters a chance to attack. We definitely had some communication problems at times, but I was pleased at the way our players stuck together and supported each other through those rough spots.

LC hits the road for a matchup with the Millikin University JV team on Thursday and will participate in the Illinois Valley Invitaional tournament on Saturday.

The Lincoln College volleyball team won two matches at home on Saturday. LC started the day by downing Florissant Valley Community College 25-12, 25-12, 20-25, 25-11. In the afternoon they defeated Rend Lake College by scores of 25-18, 14-25, 25-19, 25-14. In the second match of the day Rend Lake defeated FVCC in three sets. The Lady Lynx are now 12-4 on the season.

LC Stats:

• Kristen Mahoney 21 kills, 4 blocks, 24 points
• Stephanie Dziengel 28 set assists, 12 points
• Gretchen Rieger 8 kills, 28 digs, 8 points
• Rhiannon Speckhart 21 digs, 3 points
• Jenna Luck 10 kills, 20 digs
• Melanie Herbeck 23 set assists, 18 points
• Kaylah Murphy 4 digs, 6 points
• Priscilla Craig 7 kills
• Stephanie Thoele 2 kills, 1 point
• Celine Belcher 3 kills, 5 digs, 7 points

LC Coach Mark Tippett: In the Flo. Valley match we were able to control the tempo of the game effectively and get everyone on the team some playing time. The lineup changes may have gotten us a little out of sorts in game three, but several of our players gained some much needed experience. When we returned ot our normal rotation we were able to build an early lead and win it without much drama. In the afternoon match we were tested by Rend Lake's 6'0" setter who was very good at attacking the second ball. They had some aggressive hitters as well, but we picked up the intensity on defense at the right times and earned several hard fought points. I was inpressed by how we kept our composure after dropping the second set. Everyone stuck together and we made the adjustments needed to take back the momentum. Overall, it was a very strong performace, and I am pleased with the direction our team is headed.

LC continues their home stand on Monday with a 6:00 pm matchup against Mid-West Athletic Conference foe Lewis & Clark CC.

The Lincoln College volleyball team lost in four sets to visiting Illinois Central College. The Lady Lynx dropped the first two sets by scores of 25-10 and 25-19 before storming back to take the third set 25-20. Set four was a see-saw battle until a late run by ICC extended their lead to an eventual 25-18 victory. Lincoln College is now 10-4 on the season.

LC Stats:

Gretchen Rieger 8 kills, 19 digs, 4 points

Chelsea Barr 15 digs, 5 points

Stephanie Dziengel 13 set assists, 5 points

Kristen Mahoney 6 kills, 2 blocks, 5 points

Rhiannon Speckhart 10 digs, 6 points

Jenna Luck 5 kills, 6 digs

Melanie Herbeck 11 set assists, 4 points

LC Coach Mark Tippett: ICC is a team with a lot of weapons and they are ranked highly in the NJCAA national polls, but we showed tonight that we have what it takes to compete at just as high a level. Set one got away from us when one of their jump servers got on a roll, but aside from that run we played them tough the rest of the match. Our passing game was steady enough to allow our offense to work, and defensively we rose to the challenge of stopping their attack quite well. The match was very entertaining, and both teams played hard. Even though we took a loss, I believe we gained a good deal of confidence and will be a stronger team for it in the long run.

LC continues their home stand on Saturday when they host Rend Lake College and Florissant Valley CC for a triangular, and then a confernce matchup with Lewis & Clark CC on Monday evening.

Lincoln College won their first conference match of the season by defeating Springfield College in four sets.  The Lady Lynx dropped a close first set 23-25 before dominating SCI in sets two and three by scores of 25-13 and 25-15. In set four, LC was down 19-21 before going on a four point run and eventually closing out the match with a 25-23 victory.  LC is now 10-3 on the season.
LC Stats:
Stephanie Dziengel - 19 set assists, 18 points
Gretchen Rieger - 10 kills, 14 digs, 6 points
Kristen Mahoney - 9 kills, 5 blocks, 5 points
Jenna Luck - 8 kills, 13 digs, 6 points
Priscilla Craig - 7 kills, 5 blocks
Rhiannon Speckhart - 16 digs, 4 points
Courtney Ebner - 6 kills, 4 blocks
Melanie Herbeck - 16 set assists, 6 points
Lara Dawson - 6 kills, 2 blocks

LC Coach Mark Tippett:  Road victories in our conference are hard to come by, and we earned one tonight.  Sets one and four were battles from beginning to end.  In the middle of the match we were able to control the flow of the game by passing well, playing aggressively at the net, and eliminating the unforced errors.  Our setters did an excellent job of spreading the ball around and keeping SCI off balance.  Everyone played hard and contributed to an exciting win.
Lincoln College hosts Illinois Central College on Thursday.

Lincoln College was pushed to the limit on Thursday evening by visiting Robert Morris College, but the Lady Lynx rallied to win a thrilling 5 set match and move their record to 7-1. LC came out strong, winning set one 25-17. Game two saw LC let two large leads slip away and eventually fall 24-26. RMC won set four 25-22, but LC found its groove and took game four 25-16. In the deciding game to 15 LC was down 7-11, but rallied to take the match by a score of 15-13.

Gretchen Rieger 11 kills, 16 digs, 5 points

Stephanie Dziengel 21 set assists, 9 points

Kristen Mahoney 9 kills, 3 blocks, 14 points

Rhiannon Speckhart 19 digs, 8 points

Jenna Luck 9 kills, 9 digs, 10 points

Melanie Herbeck 11 set assists, 4 points

Lara Dawson 6 kills, 4 blocks

Priscilla Craig 5 kills, 5 block

Courtney Ebner 3 kills, 4 blocks

Chelsea Barr 6 digs

LC coach Mark Tippett: Tonight we learned a lesson about the imortance of consistent serving. We were in control of the match until we let Robert Morris back in it by missing 6 serves in game two. Our opponents took advantage of our carelessness and forced us to go the distance to get the win. I was pleased to see the way we fought through our troubles and made some huge plays when we needed them most. We were fortunate to come away with the victory.

Lincoln College will travel to Danville on Saturday to compete in the DACC Invitational.

On Saturday the Lincoln College volleyball team took second place in the third annual Black Hawk College Invitational Tournament. The Lady Lynx (6-1) finished first in their pool with a 3-0 record. During pool play they defeated Elgin College (25-14, 25-15), Waubonsee College (25-18, 25-14), and tournament host Black Hawk College (25-23, 25-22). In their semifinal match up with Southeastern Community College, LC held off their opponents 25-22, 25-21 to advance to the championship match against Rock Valley Community College. RVCC handed LC their first loss of the season by scores of 25-22 and 25-19. Lincoln College freshman right side hitter Lara Dawson was named to the All-Tournament team.

Tournament Totals:

Stephanie Dziengel 29 set assists, 10 points, 3 aces

Melanie Herbeck 16 set assists, 21 points, 5 aces

Courtney Ebner 23 kills, 5 blocks

Kristen Mahoney 17 kills, 6 blocks, 23 points, 4 aces

Gretchen Rieger 13 kills, 36 digs, 15 points

Jenna Luck 12 kills, 7 digs, 10 points, 3 aces

Priscilla Craig 7 kills, 4 block

Lara Dawson 6 kills, 2 blocks

Rhiannon Speckhart 37 digs, 9 points

LC Coach Mark Tippett: Our players put together an outstanding team effort today. Everyone who took the floor contributed something positive. I am pleased with the way our offense is running, and defensively we have shown the kind of intensity and toughness that is needed to win at this level. Our matches with Black Hawk and Southeastern were hard fought from beginning to end, but each time we rose to the challenge and found ways to win. The final was a great experience for our younger players because Rock Valley has an experienced team full of good athletes. We hung right with them for most of the first game, but their aggressive serving eventually wore us down. Overall it was a great day for our squad which had a very productive first week of the season.

LC has two home matches this week. The Illinois College JV team will visit on Wednesday evening and Robert Morris College of Springfield comes to town on Thursday. Both matches begin at 6 p.m.

The Lincoln College volleyball team improved their record to 2-0 on Thursday evening with a three set victory over Carl Sandburg College (0-1). The Lady Lynx traveled to Galesburg for their first road game of the season and won by scores of 25-20, 25-21, and 25-19.

Kristen Mahoney 7 kills, 2 blocks

Lara Dawson 7 kills, 4 digs

Gretchen Rieger 4 kills, 15 digs, 6 points

Courtney Ebner 5 kills, 1 block

Priscilla Craig 2 kills, 1 block

Jenna Luck 2 kills, 7 digs, 3 aces

Melanie Herbeck 11 set assists, 6 points, 5 digs

Stephanie Dziengel 9 set assists, 7 points

Rhiannon Speckhart 10 digs, 4 points

Celine Belcher 6 points

LC coach Mark Tippett: All three sets in this match saw the momentum swing from one side to the other. Fortunately for us we were able to grab it each time the scores got near 20 points then push through to win. I was again impressed by the composure that our team displayed when the pressure was on. Each time Sandburg made a run at us we found a way to stop their attack and regain control of the match. Our team is playing at a very high level considering how young we are and how early it is in the season.

Lincoln College will travel to Moline, IL this Saturday to participate in the Black Hawk College Invitational Tournament.