2024 SMCC Women's Volleyball News
Trio of Cougars Earn All-Region I Division II Honors
November 05, 2024
Sophomores Rylea Simonich (First Team), Mikelle McAfee (Second Team), and Ayanna Rae LeBlanc (Honorable Mention) of the South Mountain Community College women's volleyball team earned All-Region I Division II honors for their play in the 2024 season. Simonich led SMCC with 328 kills and surpassed 500 for her career, McAfee had a team-high 588 digs to go over 1,000 for her career, and LeBlanc posted 115 total blocks to set a new program best since the 2012 season.
SMCC Women's Volleyball Concludes 2024 Season
November 04, 2024
The South Mountain Community College women's volleyball team (5-22, 3-15 ACCAC) wrapped up its 2024 season last week with a 3-0 loss at Glendale CC on Oct. 30 and a 3-2 defeat at Chandler-Gilbert CC on Nov. 1. Sophomore Rylea Simonich led the Cougars with 10 kills against the Gauchos. Two days later, against the Coyotes, Simonich posted 18 kills and 15 digs, while freshman Alyssa Szymanski had a season-high 11 kills.
Simonich Surpasses 500 Career Kills for SMCC Women's Volleyball
October 30, 2024
Sophomore Rylea Simonich became the first Cougar to surpass 500 kills since the 2018 season as the South Mountain Community College women's volleyball team (5-20, 3-13 ACCAC) fell 3-0 to Scottsdale CC on Oct. 23 and 3-2 to Pima CC on Oct. 25 in a pair of conference matches last week. Simonich went over the 500 mark at some point during the match with the Aztecs and finished the contest with a team-high 15 kills. She also led SMCC with five kills against the Fighting Artichokes.
McAfee Eclipses 1,000 Career Digs as SMCC Women's Volleyball Sweeps Phoenix College
October 21, 2024
The South Mountain Community College women's volleyball team (5-18, 3-11 ACCAC) fell 3-1 to Mesa CC on Oct. 16 and defeated Phoenix College 3-0 on Oct. 18 in a pair of ACCAC matches last week at the SMCC Gym. Sophomore Mikelle McAfee surpassed 1,000 career digs in the victory over the Bears, becoming the first player to accomplish the feat since at least 2012 and possibly in program history. Sophomore Rylea Simonich led SMCC with 13 kills against PC, freshman Reagen Blair set a new season high with 11, and sophomore Ayanna Rae LeBlanc added 10.
Chandler-Gilbert CC Edges SMCC Women's Volleyball in Five Sets
October 14, 2024
The South Mountain Community College women's volleyball team (4-17, 2-10 ACCAC) lost 3-2 to Chandler-Gilbert CC in an ACCAC match on Wednesday, Oct. 9, at the SMCC Gym. Sophomore Rylea Simonich led SMCC with 16 kills and recorded her 11th double-double of the season with 16 digs. Freshman Bailee Baca had 11 kills and hit .423 with nine digs, while sophomore Raegan Moran posted her second double-double of the year with 22 assists and 11 digs.
SMCC Women's Volleyball Falls to Pima CC, Glendale CC
October 07, 2024
The South Mountain Community College women's volleyball team (4-16, 2-9 ACCAC) fell 3-0 to Pima CC on Oct. 2 and 3-0 to Glendale CC on Oct. 4 in a pair of ACCAC matches last week. Sophomore Lesjune Florance-Littles led SMCC in kills in both contests, finishing with nine kills against the Aztecs and a career-high 10 kills against the Gauchos. Sophomore Mikelle McAfee had double-digit digs and sophomore Ayanna Rae LeBlanc recorded 11 blocks over the two matches.
SMCC Women's Volleyball Continues Season with Win over Phoenix College
September 30, 2024
The South Mountain Community College women's volleyball team (4-14, 2-7 ACCAC) played three matches last week, falling 3-2 at Central Arizona on Sept. 24, defeating Phoenix College 3-2 on the road on Sept. 25, and falling 3-1 to nationally ranked Scottsdale CC at home on Sept. 27. Freshman Bailee Baca recorded a double-double in all three matches, the first three of her SMCC career, while sophomores Rylea Simonich and Ayanna Rae LeBlanc added 19 and 12 kills, respectively, to help lift the Cougars past the Bears.
SMCC Women's Volleyball Splits with Phoenix College and Mesa CC
September 23, 2024
The South Mountain Community College women's volleyball team (3-12, 1-6 ACCAC) split its ACCAC contests last week, defeating Phoenix College at home 3-1 on Sept. 17 before falling 3-2 to nationally ranked Mesa CC in a road match on Sept. 19. Sophomore Ayanna Rae LeBlanc set a new career high with 18 kills and hit a sizzling .500 in 34 swings in the four-set victory over the Bears. Two days later, sophomore Rylea Simonich led SMCC with 21 kills, one shy of matching her career best, as the Cougars nearly pulled off the road upset against the Thunderbirds.
SMCC Women's Volleyball Falls to Glendale CC, Chandler-Gilbert CC
September 16, 2024
The South Mountain Community College women's volleyball team (2-11, 0-5 ACCAC) lost 3-0 to Glendale CC on Sept. 11 and 3-2 to Chandler-Gilbert CC on Sept. 13 in a pair of ACCAC road matches. Against the Gauchos, sophomore Rylea Simonich led the Cougars with 14 kills and added seven digs. Two days later, sophomore Ayanna Rae LeBlanc recorded a career-high 12 kills, sophomore Hope Williamson dished out a career-high 48 assists, and Simonich posted 22 kills.
SMCC Women's Volleyball Falls to Scottsdale CC, Pima CC
September 09, 2024
The South Mountain Community College women's volleyball team (2-9, 0-3 ACCAC) lost 3-1 to nationally ranked Scottsdale CC on Sept. 4 and 3-1 to Pima CC on Sept. 6 in a pair of ACCAC contests. Against the Artichokes, sophomore Rylea Simonich posted a career-high 22 kills and 19 digs for her fourth double-double. Two days later, Simonich led SMCC with 13 kills while sophomore Hope Williamson and freshman Reagen Blair added six against the Aztecs.
SMCC Women's Volleyball Downs Williston State in Season-Opening Homestand
September 03, 2024
The South Mountain Community College women's volleyball (2-7, 0-1 ACCAC) opened its 2024 home campaign with three matches last week, falling 3-2 to Mesa CC and 3-1 to Highland CC while defeating Williston State College 3-0. Sophomore Rylea Simonich had 47 kills over the three matches and set new career-highs with 19 kills and 17 digs against the Thunderbirds in the ACCAC opener on Aug. 28. Fellow sophomore Hope Williamson also set a new career best with 19 kills against the Thunderbirds and a third sophomore, Ayanna Rae LeBlanc, had double-digit kills against Mesa CC and Highland CC.
Cougar Women's Volleyball Starts 2024 Season at Opening Weekend Tournament
August 26, 2024
The South Mountain Community College women's volleyball team (1-5) started its 2024 season with six matches in Illinois, five of which were part of the Opening Weekend Tournament in Rockford. SMCC opened the year in exciting fashion, posting a 3-2 victory over Rock Valley College on Aug. 22. Among the standouts from the weekend for the Cougars were sophomores Mikelle McAfee (111 digs, seven service aces), Ayanna Rae LeBlanc (24 kills, 17 total blocks), and Hope Williamson (23 kills, 63 assists, 40 digs).
SMCC Women's Volleyball Releases 2024 Schedule
July 23, 2024
The South Mountain Community College women's volleyball team and head coach Melissa Joseph released the Cougars' 2024 schedule, highlighted by 14 home matches and a trip to Illinois to compete in the Opening Week Tournament. Joseph returns six letterwinners from the 2023 squad, including Second Team All-ACCAC and All-Region I Division II middle blocker Rylea Simonich.