Fort Bend Austin collects payback, ousts Clear Creek
MANVEL — Coaches often implore their players to leave the past behind. That was not happening for Fort Bend Austin on Tuesday.
Same gym. Same opponent. Same round of the postseason. The Lady Bulldogs were not going to forget about anything.
Austin survived Clear Creek’s best punch and then hit back with a flurry in a matchup of volleyball heavyweights at Manvel High School. The Lady Bulldogs won the Region III-6A third-round match 18-25, 2520, 25-17, 25-22.
Clear Creek beat Austin in the third round of last year’s playoffs by two points in the fifth game. With both teams returning supremely talented rosters — nine players have pledged to college teams — it was highly probable they’d meet in the third round this year.
“It’s been 365 days to this day that we have been thinking about it,” said Austin senior Erin Mulcahey. “We wanted our revenge.”
No. 2-ranked Austin (432) advances to the regional tournament at the Campbell Center, where it will face No. 6 Cinco Ranch (34-3) at 6 p.m. Friday in the first of two semifinals. The second semifinal pits Seven Lakes (28-11) and Clear Springs (36-11).
Ranked No. 4 in the state, Clear Creek (41-6) played almost flawlessly in the first game Tuesday. The Wildcats’ defense was all over the place, and setter Mariah Pardo repeatedly found her hitters for easy kills.
Everything changed in the second game. Austin got its offense going behind setter Mallory Nicholson. Mulcahey, Dylan Brinkman, Kayley Hollywood and Paige Swinney all contributed powerful swings to give the Lady Bulldogs the momentum.
Austin coach Amy Cataline said nothing special turned the tide. She simply reminded her players of how badly they wanted the victory and repeated the game plan.
The Lady Bulldogs steamrolled through the second half of the third game and seemed to have a big leg up in the fourth game when they led 18-13. Clear Creek fought off three match points before Austin put the match away.
Games get more difficult the deeper it gets in the postseason, but that especially is the case in Houston for volleyball. Four of the state’s top eight-ranked teams were still alive in Tuesday’s regional quarterfinals.
Cinco Ranch defeated No. 8 Bellaire by three points in the fifth game. Clear Springs ousted No. 5 Pearland with a 15-13 win in game five.
The Region III champ is likely to be better tested in the playoffs than any other regional champ. Clear Creek coach Scott Simonds knows that as well as anybody. He guided his team to the regional title in 2008 and has gone undefeated each of the last two seasons in 24-6A, the state’s toughest district.
“The Houston area right now is definitely stacked,” Simonds said. “There are some good teams going home tonight, including us.”