McAfee Eclipses 1,000 Career Digs as SMCC Women's Volleyball Sweeps Phoenix College

PHOENIX ---

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. 

Phoenix College Recap

The Cougars swept the Bears in straight sets to sweep the season series: 25-20, 27-25, 25-13. SMCC hit .239 with 41 kills in 109 attacks and added 38 assists, six service aces, 48 digs, two solo blocks, and 12 block assists. 

McAfee went over the 1,000 mark at some point in the contest and finished with 14 digs, two assists, and one ace. In 23 matches and 87 sets this season, McAfee has 514 digs, an average of 5.91 per set. She has 1,004 in 51 matches and 191 sets for her SMCC career. 

Simonich totaled 13 kills in 41 swings to hit .244 in the three sets. She enters the match at Scottsdale on Oct. 23, needing eight kills to become the first Cougar to reach 500 for her career since 2018. She added nine digs, two block assists, one assist, and one ace. 

Blair set a new season best with her 11 kills, hitting .222 on 27 attacks. She finished with three digs and two service aces. LeBlanc had 10 kills in 20 swings to hit .350 and added four block assists, one solo block, and one ace. 

Sophomore Raegan Moran led SMCC with 16 assists and added two kills, one dig, and one block assist. Sophomore Hope Williamson had 13 assists, two digs, one kill, and one block assist.

Freshman Ailynn Solis posted a season-high eight digs, five assists, and an ace. Fellow rookie Zariah Brown had two kills, two block assists, and a block assist. 

Mesa CC Recap

The Thunderbirds defeated the Cougars in four sets on Oct. 16: 25-19, 25-19, 23-25, 25-20. SMCC hit .147 with 48 kills in 184 swings and added 80 digs, 47 assists, six aces, one solo block, and 14 block assists. 

Simonich crept closer to 500 career kills with a team-high 10 in 67 swings. She set a new career high with 24 digs and added three assists, an ace, and two block assists. 

Freshman Alyssa Szymanski matched a season-high with eight kills, hitting .238 on 21 attacks. She also had three block assists. 

Freshman Bailee Baca and LeBlanc each had seven kills over the four sets. LeBlanc hit .200 in 20 swings with one solo block and three block assists, while Baca had seven digs and two assists. 

Blair and sophomore Lesjune Florance-Littles had four kills apiece, with Florance-Littles adding four digs and a block assist. 

Williamson led SMCC with 28 assists, adding five digs and three aces, while Moran had 10 assists, 11 digs, and a kill.