-Messenger photo by Britt Kudla Liza Hatcher of Iowa Central serves against Northern Iowa Area on Wednesday inside Hodges Fieldhouse

The 17th-ranked Iowa Central volleyball team took care of business once again at Hodges Fieldhouse Wednesday night, sweeping North Iowa Area.

Scores were 25-14, 25-7 and 25-22.

With the win, the Tritons (24-7 overall, 6-1 in ICCAC) assured themselves of no worse than a third place conference finish. Iowa Central is tied with Des Moines Area for second, with a meeting vs. the Bears scheduled for next Wednesday.

Gabby Sullivan recorded 16 kills and had three aces, Abby Lohrmann recorded 31 assists and Michele O’Haver had 20 digs in the sweep for the Tritons.

“We kind of had an idea we would end up with DMACC and Kirkwood would have Northeast after our match (vs. the Eagles),” ICCC head coach Sara Horn said. “We all four play each other next week, so that could be a regional final preview.”

The ICCAC splits into two brackets and has two national qualifiers for the postseason. The league winner is on one side, with the runner-up on the other.

Sullivan and Libby Zorn dominated right from the start, recording seven kills in the first set. The Tritons also had six aces as a team in the set, finishing with 11 as a team.

“I thought we played a very solid first two sets,” Horn said. “We took a little off in the third, but we came back and finished strong.

“NIACC has some really good hitters and they played well in that third. It was good to see our team respond and come out and finish it off.”

Asarar Gony and Zorn each added eight kills on the night, with Kayla Faldet recording three. Lexi Green had four blocks, two kills and a pair of digs, with Sullivan, Lohrmann, Faldet and Zorn all recording two blocks each.

Kryssie Okinaka had seven digs and Fort Dodge Senior High graduate Liza Hatcher two aces.

Iowa Central did suffer a scare early in the match, as Sullivan went down with what appeared to be an ankle injury. She made a quick trip to the locker room before returning and finishing the night.

“I feel like we are just starting to get everyone healthy,” Horn said. “Emily Nelson should be back this weekend. When Gabby went down, you do cringe because those plays under the net are always scary.”

Leading the way for NIACC (6-18, 0-7) was Hannah Wagner, who had five kills. Brooke Greenwood and Shelby Heston each had four, with Heston recording two aces.

The Tritons host their own invitational this Friday and Saturday. They play sixth-ranked Cowley and Labette first at 3:30 p.m. and 7 p.m., closing out the weekend with North Platte and Carl Sandburg Saturday at 10:45 a.m. and 4 p.m.