By: Devin Jones
Box Score Joliet Junior College women's volleyball fought hard in its first home match of the 2025 season, but came up just short in a five-set thriller against Judson University.
The Wolves came out sharp in the first set, rallying from an early deficit to tie the score at 20-20 before pulling away for a 25-22 win.
In the second, JJC trailed 21-15 before a timeout from head coach Ally Flanagan sparked a rally. The Wolves closed the gap to 22-20, but Judson held on for a 25-21 victory to even the match.
JJC bounced back in dominant fashion in the third set, controlling the net on both offense and defense to secure a 25-16 win and take a 2-1 lead in the match.
The fourth set was back-and-forth throughout, with Christian Bouie and Aubrey Phillips making key blocks and diving saves to keep the Wolves in it. Despite the defensive effort, Judson edged out a 25-23 win to force a decisive fifth set.
The final frame was a thriller, with both sides trading points to 10-10. Bouie came up with a huge block to even things at 14-14, but Judson managed to close it out 18-16, sealing the 3-2 match victory.
Flanagan said the match showed both positives and areas for growth.
"Our improvement needs to focus on speed and execution," Flanagan said. "We had really strong swings and solid passing tonight, but now it's about finishing matches in three sets. That's going to be our focus over the next couple of weeks."
The Wolves fall to 2-4 on the season and will look to bounce back when they host Elgin Community College on Saturday.
