Volleyball: Fayetteville surges past Springdale Har-Ber

Faith Waitsman (12) of Fayetteville hits past Emily Thompson (23) and Paige Williams (21) of Springdale Har-Ber on Tuesday in Fayetteville. Visit nwadg.com/photos to see more photographs from the match.
Faith Waitsman (12) of Fayetteville hits past Emily Thompson (23) and Paige Williams (21) of Springdale Har-Ber on Tuesday in Fayetteville. Visit nwadg.com/photos to see more photographs from the match.

FAYETTEVILLE -- Fayetteville responded forcefully after a surprise loss in the first set to Springdale Har-Ber.

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NWA Democrat-Gazette

Abbie Kathol (1) of Fayetteville sends the ball over the net Tuesday as Elizabeth Williams (13) and Makiah Martin (16) of Springdale Har-Ber defend.

The Lady Bulldogs won three consecutive games and defeated Har-Ber 3-1 Tuesday in 7A-West Conference action at Bulldog Arena. Sophomore Haley Warner had 18 kills and five blocks to lead Fayetteville (21-3, 10-0), which remains undefeated in league play.

Ha-Ber got off to a good start on the road by winning the first set, 25-23. The loss got Fayetteville's attention, and the Lady Bulldogs answered with wins of 25-12, 25-18, and 25-12 to take the series.

"Har-Ber blocked really well and defended us really well in game one," Fayetteville coach Jessica Phelan said. "But I'm really proud of how we responded in game two. We picked it up, especially offensively. We're proud of the progress our kids are making and feel good about where we're at."

Fayetteville received offensive balance with four players who had at least 12 kills. Warner was followed by Faith Waitsman with 13 kills and Abbie Kathol and Hadly Spresser with 12 kills apiece. Olivia Wales had 17 digs, and Ella May Powell finished with 54 assists.

Klaire Trainor had 14 kills and Lauren Thompson 13 kills for Har-Ber (20-4-2, 6-4), which led in each game last week while getting swept by Bentonville.

"I hate to say it, but we got outworked," Har-Ber coach Shyrah Schisler said. "Fayetteville was grittier than us, and they got the balls up that we didn't get up tonight."

Har-Ber jumped to leads of 8-4 and 17-13 in the opener behind a series of kills from Trainor and Lauren Thompson. Har-Ber reached match point when Trainor fooled the Fayetteville defense with a dink into the open court, and the Lady Wildcats won when Fayetteville failed to hit a serve over the net.

The loss served as a wake-up call for Fayetteville, which dominated the second set 25-12 to even the series. Pressler finished the game with a kill for Fayetteville, which stretched a 14-7 lead to 20-9.

Fayetteville pulled away in the third set to take a 2-1 series lead. Warner had a kill when Fayetteville scored five consecutive points to lead 21-14. At match point, Warner kept a volley alive with a diving save, and Waitsman finished the set with an easy kill to give Fayetteville a 25-18 win.

Fayetteville was not seriously threatened in the fourth set and won 25-12 to end its night's work.

Sports on 10/07/2015

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