The Des Moines Area Community College volleyball team saw its season come to an end with a 3-0 loss to Kirkwood Community College in the Region 11-A match on Nov. 4 in Cedar Rapids. The Bears finished the season with a 21-16 overall record.
Sophomore Ramsey Johnston led DMACC with nine kills, 13 assists, and 14 digs. Sophomore Kathryn Lukkarinen of Macomb, Illinois, also performed strongly with eight kills and seven digs. Freshman Malia Clayburg of Coon Rapids added eight kills and seven kills, respectively.
Sophomore Paige De Jong contributed 10 assists, two service aces, and 11 digs in the match. Kirkwood won the match in three sets with scores of 25-18, 28-26 and 25-16. The second set was a hard-fought battle because it went beyond the usual 25 points.
DMACC finished the season ranked 18th in the most recent National Junior College Athletic Association Division 11 poll. The Bears officially ended the year with a 9-4 record in the Iowa Community Athletic Conference.
Kirkwood, the No. 1 ranked in NJCAA Division 11, remained undefeated with a 34-0 record after the victory. The Eagles advanced to the 2026 NJCAA Division 11 Volleyball Championship, scheduled for Nov. 18-21 in Cedar Rapids. The loss ended DMACC’s season at 21-16 overall.
Johnston finished the match with 33 kills on 109 attacks and 14 hitting errors. She also recorded 167 assists during the season. Lukkarinen added 174 kills on 250 attacks with 20 hitting errors.
The Bears will now look ahead to next season after finishing another year of competition in the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference.