Defending champion Benton tops Harrison
SEARCY — Benton fought off Harrison for a 3-0 win (2522, 25-20, 25-20) in the semifinals of the Class 5A volleyball state tournament Thursday at Searcy High School and will defend its state title in Saturday’s 5A championship game at Hot Springs.
The length and athleticism of the Panthers, led by Illinois State commit Khenedi Guest who dominated around the net throughout the contest, created issues for Harrison.
“What we tend to do is the first rotation, people stay close to us,” Benton Coach Michelle Shoppach said. “The second rotation we tend to make a spread and by time we get to the third rotation, we finish it off.”
In a back-and-forth first set, Benton was able to fend off a furious comeback attempt from Harrison to hang on for a 25-22 win. The Goblins struggled early and fell behind, but got back in contention.
The second set was similar to the first, with Benton jumping out to an early lead and Harrison slowly chipping away at the deficit. The Goblins closed the gap to 22-20, but the Panthers scored the final three points to win the set.
“One of the things we do in practice is we try to create a lot of chaos,” Shoppach said. “We had one of our main players go down, so we had to make some adjustments. Thank goodness I got a coaching staff that knew what was going on and knew the right people to put in.”
In the third set, Benton continued to exert its dominance and secured the victory and a trip to the championship game with a 25-20 triumph. The Panthers celebrated the win on the court, but will have to quickly move on as they prepare to take on Greenwood in the title game Saturday.
“I know they’re hungry,” Shoppach said of Greenwood. “Very competitive. They have an extremely well-known program. They’re very solid in everything they do. Looks like they’re front row has enough firepower to come at us.”
GREENWOOD 3, MOUNT ST. MARY 0
In Thursday’s first semifinal match, Greenwood defeated Mount St. Mary Academy 3-0 (25-16, 26-24, 25-18).
Greenwood started off the game hot, taking the opening set decisively.
Mount St. Mary Academy put up a much better fight in the second set, staying competitive with Greenwood in a set that went down to the wire. On the second match point, the Bulldogs were able to prevail and squeak by with a 26-24 win.
Greenwood was able to close out the Belles in the third set, winning by a score of 25-18. Mount St. Mary Academy struggled to match the intensity it brought in the second set.