Lady Tigers claim outright title
Texas High volleyball took the outright District 15-5A championship and spoiled any playoff hopes by Sulphur Springs with a win over the Lady Cats on Tuesday at the Tiger Center.
The Lady Tigers overcame eight ties in the first set, rallied back from late deficits in both the first and second sets and led for all but one point in the third set of a 25-23, 25-22, 25-13 victory to close out the regular season and sweep on Senior Night.
Texas High (24-10, 9-1) will play John Tyler in a bi-district match next Tuesday. That playoff tilt is set for 7 p.m. at Marshall High School. THS plays a warm-up match at Pleasant Grove Friday at 4:30 p.m.
It was the final home match for five THS seniors: Kaitlyn Cross, Vicki Willis, Katelyn Jordan, Mia Wilson and Treyaunna Rush.
“I’m excited for these girls; they’ve worked hard to get here,” Texas High coach Melissa Hardy said. “At first, it didn’t look all that nice because of the competition we were playing, but it helped us get better in different areas. Now, we’re beginning to peak, and this is the right time to peak.
“I’m excited for them, proud of them and
ready to see what we’re going to do in the playoffs.”
Rush turned in a quadruple-double with 16 kills, 15 points, 15 assists and 11 digs, along with five blocks, Cross had 11 kills and 15 points and Jordan added 13 points and 12 assists.
Sulphur Springs (28-13, 4-6) led the first set 23-20, but Olivia Lower served five in a row to close out the set for the Tigers. The Wildcats used a five-point rally to go up 22-21 in the second set, but Jordan served the next four—a block and kill from each Rush and Lower—to give Texas High a 2-0 lead in the
match.
On the second point of the third set, Sulphur Springs senior middle hitter Autumn Tanton—the biggest attacking threat for the visitors at that point—went down with an ankle injury and didn’t return. Her team gained their composure, but trailed 11-3 by the time that happened.
Texas High never looked back, and Cross served six straight to end the match after the Wildcats cut the deficit to six points (19-13).
“Sulphur Springs had a lot to play for tonight; we had a lot to play for tonight,” Hardy said. “I thought we played up to our capabilities. I was proud to see how they responded in the second game, being down and coming back and winning it, shows that tenacity and how they’re going to fight for it. We want to see that around playoff time.”
Lower served a game-high 18 points for the Tigers, and she added seven kills, three blocks and nine digs. Sophomore Ashlyn Stiger delivered six blocks, and Willis led the backrow with 16 digs.
Madison Vickery had seven kills—five in the final set with Tanton on the bench—and two blocks for Sulphur Springs, and Tanton finished with six kills.
The Wildcats won the junior varsity match, 25-27, 25-9, 25-23. Lauren Allred served 21 points for THS, Valeria Perez had 18 digs, Logan Pilgreen had seven kills and Ashanti Northcross added five kills.
Sulphur Springs’ freshmen won, 16-25, 25-22, 25-16. Lizzie Smith paced the Tigers with 19 service points.