Indians Fight to 2-0 Start on Opening Day

FULTON, Miss. – The Indians opened its 2025 campaign with back-to-back wins on Thursday, defeating Northwest Shoals in four sets and outlasting Pellissippi State in a five-set battle.

Indians 3, Northwest Shoals 1

The Indians opened the 2025 season with a 3-1 victory over Northwest Shoals on Friday. ICC set the tone early with a dominant first set before the Patriots battled back to even the match. The Indians answered with strong play in the final two sets to secure the win.

Michael Ann East (Oxford) led the attack with 11 kills, while McLaine Dorr (Madison) added 7 kills and 2 blocks. Fisher Enis (Brandon) sparked the offense with 15 assists to go along with 3 service aces. Nala Salter (Flowood) and Maggie Miller (Marion, AR) chipped in three aces apiece, and libero Chloe Carr (Flora) anchored the defense with 7 digs.

"It's great to get our freshmen some valuable experience right away," said ICC head coach Annie McGregor. "Northwest Shoals showed a lot of fight. For it being their first year as a program, they played hard and made us earn every point."

Indians 3, Pellissippi State 2

In their second match of the day, the Indians fought through a five-set thriller to take down a tough Pellissippi State squad. With the match tied at two sets apiece, ICC dug deep in the fifth and came up with clutch plays late, sealing an 18-16 victory to finish the day 2-0.

Dorr paced the attack with 12 kills and a block assist, while Ivyaan Taylor (Caledonia) provided an efficient spark off the bench with 6 kills on just 8 swings. Kadence Rolston (Florence, AL) added 6 kills, and Salter chipped in 7 kills and a team-high 18 digs. Miller directed the offense with 21 assists, while defensive specialist Annie Woolbright (Columbus) anchored the back row with 17 digs.

The deciding moment came at match point when sophomores Dorr and Kaydee Vaughn combined for a block to clinch the win.

"That was a hard-fought match," said Coach McGregor. "Pellissippi State is a very tough team, and we had to dig deep to find a way to win. I'm proud of our team's effort and happy to start the season 2-0."

ICC (2-0) will return to action tomorrow with two more matches, facing Calhoun at 9 a.m. and Bevill State at 3 p.m.