FAYETTEVILLE — The Fayetteville Lady Bulldogs will seek to a create a knot at the top of the 7A-West volleyball standings tonight when they host the Bentonville Lady Tigers.
Matches begin at 4:30 p.m. in the Fayetteville High gym.
The Lady Tigers bring a 6-0 league mark into tonight's varsity match, while Fayetteville (10-8-2 overall) and Har-Ber are both 5-1. A victory over the Lady Bulldogs would leave them on an even plane going into the second half of round robin play.
"This is a big match for us and a big opportunity," FHS head volleyball coach Jessica Phelan said. "If we can win we will be in a tie for first in the league. Then we get a chance to play everyone again."
The Lady Bulldogs have made strides in their play in recent weeks, and that was evident Tuesday night when Fayetteville won a big match on the road at Fort Smith Southside, 5 to 4.
The games see-sawed back and forth with Fayetteville falling in the first, 25-19, before rebounding in the second for a 25-22 win.
Southside went back on top with a 25-17 decision before Fayetteville turned the table on the Lady Rebels.
The Lady Bulldogs won the fourthmatch 25-23 and the fifth 15-13.
"I was very proud of the girls and the way they kept fighting back," Phelan said. "It felt like we were down most of the night. Even in the fifth game, we were down 8-4 before we tied it 11-11 and went on to win.
"It really was a gutsy, tough performance for a team on the road. It's the type of win that you can build on and gain a lot of confidence from."
Haley Martin had 21 kills to lead the Lady Bulldogs, while Sarah Pfitzinger had a dozen kills to go along with 6 aces. Setter Hannah Breden had 40 assists on the night.
Sports, Pages 7, 8 on 09/24/2009