Lady Cats Enter Friday’s Match On 2-Game Winning Streak
The Sulphur Springs Lady Cats volleyball team has began to hit their stride recently, and will be looking to keep the strong play going with a home match against Mount Vernon Friday. After going on a four-game losing streak which dropped their record to a game under .500 on the year, the Lady Cats rallied with back-to-back wins and will be looking to extend the streak to three games this evening.
@ Redwater
The Lady Cats took the road last Friday in search of a win, after dropping four games in a row, including back-to-back straight-set losses to Canton and Texas High. Needing a win to get back on track, Sulphur Springs was able to do exactly that, taking a close first set 25-23.
From there it was all Lady Cats the rest of the night, dominating the second set in a big way, by a final score of 25-6. They continued their strong play into the third and final set, winning 25-12 and putting an end to their losing streak.
Offensively it was junior Kyra Carter who led the way, finishing with 10 kills. She also led the team with four aces and even had a pair of blocks, in what was a great game all-around.
Sophomore Rainey Johnson was right behind her with seven kills and three aces. Johnson also tied for the team-high with three kills and had the second-most digs on the team with nine.
Junior’s Trinity Jefferson and Kaylee Carter also played huge roles offensively, each finishing with six kills. Jefferson tied with Johnson with three blocks, while Carter added one as well. Jefferson also did a great job setting up her teammates, as she would lead the team with 13 assists.
Defensively it was junior Tessa Allen who paced the way with 10 digs, as she was the only Lady Cat to finish in double-digits. Sophomore Madison Jeter and senior Mary Taylor each got in on the action as well, finishing with five digs each.
Other notables included freshman Harper Hodges who had six assists in the game, finishing behind just Jefferson and Johnson for the third-most on the team. The win was huge for Sulphur Springs, putting an end to their losing streak and giving them some momentum going into their next match against Rains.
@ Rains
After picking up a much-needed road win, the Lady Cats would once again have to take a bus ride, this time to Emory to face Rains. Tuesday’s road match opened in a similar fashion, with Sulphur Springs taking a close opening set, this time by a score of 25-20.
While Rains would make things even closer in the second set, the Lady Cats never lost control of their advantage, taking the set 26-24. Their momentum would carry over into the third and final set, cruising to a 25-12 win and putting the game away in straight sets.
This time around it was Johnson who led the team in kills, doing so with 11. She also led the team with four blocks, putting on a clinic at the net.
Jefferson also had another spectacular showing, leading the team with 15 assists and still finding time for nine kills of her own. Jefferson also led the team with three aces, while also finishing with four digs and a pair of blocks.
Kyra Carter and Kaylee Carter had strong showings as well, combining for nine kills, five blocks and six digs, while Taylor would add six kills, six digs, three blocks and an assist.
The win put Sulphur Springs back over the .500 mark on the season, bringing them to 14-13. This evening, they will get their first chance to play in front of their home crowd in the month of September, going up against a 9-9 Mount Vernon team who is on a three-game winning streak of their own.
While Mount Vernon has been hot of late, a huge majority of their success has come on their home court, going 8-5 at home and just 1-3 on the road.
The Lady Cats will look to keep their momentum going, especially with the home crowd on their side for the first time since Aug. 29. Tonight’s game against Mount Vernon is set to begin at 4:30 p.m.
Sulphur Springs will be at home again Tuesday, Sept. 19 when they host Van for their final non-district game of the season. Tuesday’s game is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. and a live broadcast of the game will be provided on Front Porch News and Chad’s Media.
