Har-Ber Sweeps Past Lady Mounties

SPRINGDALE — Springdale Har-Ber coach Sandy Jones asked for better communication from her team early in Tuesday’s match with Rogers.

The Lady Wildcats responded and went on to sweep Rogers High 3-0 (25-19, 25-21, 25-15) at Wildcat Arena. The victory ended a four-game conference losing streak for Har-Ber (8-7, 2-4) 7A/6A-West), which lost 3-1 to Rogers Heritage on its home court last Thursday.

“That’s what we’ve been lacking is our communication,” Jones said. “We need to work for every point and not let balls drop. They did a better job of it tonight, but it’s got to become a habit to where you do it every game.”

Kim Huff had 10 kills and Tiffani Ray 17 assists to lead Har-Ber. Caroline Webb added 11 digs and Miranda Kelly contributed four ace.

Har-Ber’s skid accelerated against Fayetteville when the Lady Wildcats blew a 2-0 series lead on its home court and lost 3-2. But Har-Ber took control late in the first set against Rogers (5-7-1, 1-5) and won the second and third games comfortably.

Rogers led 19-17 in Game 1 when the Lady Wildcats surged ahead with eight consecutive points to win 25-19. Jenna Birkes and Ray had kills to fuel the rally before Kelly delivered ace to end the game.

“We started strong but when we gave up that lead in the first set, we were never really able to get that momentum back,” Rogers coach Jeanna Breedlove said. “In the second and third games, we weren’t able to put together our offense.”

Breedlove called two timeouts in the second game but couldn’t stop the Wildcats, who grabbed leads of 17-9 and 21-13. Rogers got to within 23-20 before Har-Ber called timeout and finished off the Lady Mounties for a 25-21 victory.

Har-Ber was rarely threatened in the third game and completed the sweep with a 25-15 victory.

The victory comes at a good time for Har-Ber, which will play at rival Springdale High on Thursday before returning next week to face Van Buren. Har-Ber beat Van Buren to open conference play before going into a slide with consecutive league losses to Bentonville, Fayetteville, Siloam Springs and Rogers Heritage.

“Springdale is a big rival for us, so getting this win should give us a boost,” Jones said. “Springdale is tough at home and we’ve got to stay focused and work together right from the start.”

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