New Boston faces Harmony in area round

PITTSBURG, Texas — The New Boston Lady Lions may not be as familiar with Big Sandy Harmony, but they are familiar where they are in the tournament.

The Lions (29-7, 13-0) will face the Lady Eagles (24-10, 11-3) in the area round of the Class 3A Div. II volleyball playoffs at Pirate Gym in Pittsburg, beginning at 2 p.m.

“We’ve worked hard all year long,” New Boston head volleyball coach Haylee Houston said. “We worked hard through district and we remained undefeated. Our only focus now is our area match.”

New Boston is riding a 17-game win streak heading into their match with Big Sandy Harmony, while the Eagles have remained in the win column the past three matches.

“We’ve been able to overcome a lot of adversity throughout the year,” Houston said. “I’ve been without a few players, but we were able to come out and win. That shows the growth of this team. We work really hard for each other.”

The Lions starting lineup includes Maggie Taylor, Haley McAlexander, Carleigh Reeves, Chloe Davis, Lauren Hurst, Tamiya Smith and Carlee Ratcliff.

“We remain humble throughout everything because we know we’re going to have to come out and work,” Houston said. “We can’t just show up to the gym and expect to win. We’re going to be facing teams that are just as good, if not better. We’re going to have to come out and do the little things. We have to control the things we can control and be prepared.”

The Lions have swept their last four opponents heading into their match with Harmony.

“Big Sandy Harmony has a really athletic team that can attack the nets,” Houston said. “They’ve always had a successful program. We play them in multiple sports, so I know their athletic program as whole has been successful. We’re just going to have to play our game.”