Northwest sweeps Jones to reach Region 23 final

No. 16 Northwest Mississippi Community College swept Jones College 25-23, 25-13, 25-20 to reach the Region 23 Championship match. The victory lifted the Rangers’ record to 38-0 and set up a matchup with No. 24 Pearl River Community College, which was scheduled for Sunday at 2 p.m. at Howard Coliseum.

Jones took an early 7-3 lead in the opening set, but Northwest rallied to tie it at 17. Valerie Hurdle put the Rangers ahead 20-19, and the teams were tied again at 23 before Jones errors on the final two points gave Northwest the 25-23 win.

Northwest took control in the second set after Reese McIntosh served an ace for a 3-0 lead. Jones tied the score twice, including at 5, before Dallas White led a six-point run that put the Rangers ahead 11-5. Northwest closed the set with a 12-4 stretch for a 25-13 victory.

Jones opened the third set with three straight points, but Northwest drew even at 6 on a Sofia Gonzalez ace and moved ahead 9-6. The Bobcats stayed within three points before Gonzalez delivered three late kills to help seal the 25-20 win. It was Northwest’s 34th sweep of the season, according to the team.

Gonzalez led the Rangers with 18 kills while hitting .429. She added two aces and scored 20 of Northwest’s 56 points. Woods had 11 kills, while Kylee Garcia recorded eight kills with one error. Chloe Rodriguez led the team with 25 assists, and Jania Rose had a match-high 13 digs.

Northwest finished with seven aces, four blocks and a .232 hitting percentage, while limiting Jones to one ace. The Region 23 final winner was scheduled to face the Alabama conference champion on Nov. 8, with a place in the NJCAA National Tournament in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, at stake.

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