ROGERS --Sadie Pate and Emma Palasak stepped up at the right times for Bentonville on Tuesday night.
Pate had 26 kills and Palasak added 17 kills as Bentonville rallied for a 3-2 (19-25, 25-16, 19-25, 25-13, 15-10) victory over Rogers High in a 7A-West Conference volleyball match in King Arena.
Rogers (11-12-1, 4-6 7A-West) led the fourth game 5-2 after taking a 2-1 lead in the match. But Pate, a senior, and Palasak, a sophomore, combined for 11 kills and the Lady Tigers (15-9, 9-1) used a 12-2 run to tie the match at 2-2 with a 25-13 win.
Pate then served up four-straight service points during a 6-0 run in the fifth match as the Lady Tigers rallied for the victory.
"Our seniors did a great job of stepping up after game one," said Bentonville coach Michelle Smith. "Our young ones, it took a while for them to wake up. But once they did wake up, we ran a more balanced offense and we played like team that I know we have.
"We played scared at times, and we let fear get the best of us. I give credit to Rogers because they played some really great volleyball. Much better than they did last time, and they did not make it easy on us."
Bentonville rallied for a five-set victory at Fort Smith Southside earlier this year, and Smith said that experience helped against the Lady Mounties.
"You do want to go to five, but every time you do, it prepares you," Smith said. "Mentally, we knew we were in it for the long haul, and we knew Rogers was not going to let up."
Senior Samantha Lassiter led Rogers with 20 kills while sophomore Madelyn Tauai finished with 11. Tauai had seven kills in the third game while Lassiter added six in the third game as the Lady Mounties took a 2-1 lead. Hannah Lloyd had 32 assists for Rogers while Madison Sherrill had 22 digs.
"I thought we were going to do it," said Roger coach Jeana Breedlove. "We looked so good in the first and third sets. Bentonville is a first-rate club, and you can not let your game down just a little bit. Our girls have continued to improve throughout the season, and I am pleased with where we are at.
"It wasn't even close the first time we played Bentonville. Now, we went five and had opportunities to win."
Sports on 10/07/2015