Witte-led Titans topple Cyclone netters in three

 COUNCIL BLUFFS (Sept. 18) -- Every time Lewis Central made a pivotal run against the Harlan Community volleyball team Tuesday night, junior outside hitter Megan Witte was at the forefront.
 Witte, a 6-foot-1 high flyer, pounded 20 kills and added four blocks as the resurgent Titans swept the visiting Cyclones 25-15, 25-22, 25-14 in Hawkeye Ten Conference action.
 Lewis Central, which started the season by losing 10 of its first 11 matches - many against high-quality competition - has now won five out of six in improving to 6-11 overall and 1-2 in league play. HCHS dropped to 10-13 overall and 2-3 in the H-10.
 “If you look at their schedule, they’ve played some big dogs,” said HCHS coach Willie Baughman of the Titans, who have now won six straight head-to-head matches against the Cyclones. “They’ve played some of the top teams in the state and they have one huge gun [Megan Witte]. She’s good. She’s a big gun and we couldn’t really find an answer to stop her."
 The Cyclones played right with the Titans for about half of set one and nearly all of set two, then struggled in three.
 Sporting a kill efficiency of .175, the Cyclones averaged just under 10 kills per set, led by Petersen (.316) and Anna Ahrenholtz (.333) with seven each. Macie Leinen added six kills, followed by Lauren Andersen (.385) with five kills and Hayley Hopkins with four.
 HCHS served accurately (51-of-52) but managed just three aces - two by Hopkins and one by Kara Weis, who also had 28 assists and nine digs. Petersen finished with three of the team’s eight blocks and sophomore libero Ashley Hall led the way with 16 digs and 31 serve receive attempts.