SPRINGDALE -- Defending 4A state champion Shiloh Christian started and finished with a flurry en route to a 3-0 sweep (25-19, 25-21, 25-17) against Rogers Heritage on Thursday.
"The start was fast," said Shiloh Christain coach Nathan Bodenstein. "But I thought they all looked much better in the third set. That's when they finally got comfortable and picked it up on our serve-receive, and that's how we were able to build a lead."
Fueled by three kills by senior Sarah Rountree, the Lady Saints (1-0) jumped out to a 12-0 lead in the opening set before the Lady War Eagles (0-3) began battling back after Morgan Barto's kill broke the scoreless streak.
Heritage carried momentum into the second set by scoring the first two points and maintain an advantage until Shiloh Christian 6-foot-2 senior Olivia Barnes' kill gave the Lady Saints a 6-5 lead. They never trailed again although the Lady War Eagles stayed within striking distance, even closing the margin to 14-13 on Jacklyn Neff's stuff of a Lexi Richards attack at the net.
Shiloh Christian used a 6-1 run to begin pulling away, but Heritage never stopped hustling as Neff even dove into her own bench trying to save an errant pass during the run.
"That's one thing about our girls -- they'll dive into the bench and will leave it all on the floor," said Heritage first-year coach Lindsey Layes.
In the third set, both teams traded points early on. Heritage senior Hope Von Gremp, who finished with eight kills, scored on a dink shot to trim the Lady Saints' lead to 11-10. But the Lady Saints scored eight unanswered points on their way to a 12-2 run that essentially put the set and the match away.
Heritage's roster is in flux under Layes, who was hired in late summer and didn't have her first practice with the team until July 12. Several players are trying different positions, and the Lady Eagles also were without senior outside hitter Shanice Erby because of an ankle injury.
"These girls persevere through pretty much anything," Layes said. "We have yet to have a full, healthy team, but I'm very proud of the heart they showed tonight."
For the Lady Saints, Rountree had five kills and 15 digs while Lexi Richards had a team-high six kills. Hannah Smithson had 17 assists, and Taylor Larson had 17 digs. Haley Richards fought through an illness and finished with five kills.
"Haley probably shouldn't have even been here," Bodenstein said. "But she's our energy bug and she was giving everything she could, but our energy as a team was up and down tonight."
Rogers High def. Siloam Springs, 3-0
The Lady Mounties served up 13 aces, including five by Alex Parish, en route to a 25-21, 25-20, 25-19 win over Siloam Springs.
Hannah Martin and Kassidy Wall led the attack with eight kills each for Rogers (2-0), while Parish and Emily Harris chipped in five each. Martin chipped in five digs, while Harris contributed seven blocks. Madison Sherrill distributed 27 assists.
Shaylon Sharp led the Lady Panthers (0-3) with eight kills, while Ellie Lampton added six. Meg Gray dished out 10 assists, while Chloe Price added eight. Andrea Lowery contributed a match-high 33 digs and three aces. Hadlee Hollenback added five block assists.
Fayetteville def. Ozark, Mo., 3-1
The Lady Bulldogs dropped the first set against traditional Missouri power Ozark, Mo., then fought back with three consectuve set victories to take a hardfought, 20-25, 25-20, 25-13, 25-23 match Thursday at Bulldog Arena.
Faith Waitsman was strong on both sides of the net for Fayetteville (2-0), with 12 kills and 10 blocks. Haley Warner added a match-high 22 kills, and Abbie Kathol played a big role all around with 15 digs, seven kills and six blocks.
Bentonville High def. McDonald County, Mo. 3-0
Emma Palasak had 15 kills, 11 digs and three aces to lead Bentonville to a 25-14, 25-10, 25-20 road victory over McDonald County.
Tymber Riley chipped in nine kills and 17 digs, while Riley Robbe had five kills for the Lady Tigers (2-0). Baylee Barganier led Bentonville with 35 assists.
The Lady Tigers return to action Saturday when they will host the Early Bird Invitational. They will be joined by Bentonville West, Shiloh Christian, Springdale Har-Ber and Siloam Springs.
Bentonville West def. Huntsville 3-2
Kortney Puckett served for 10 straight points, including seven aces, as Bentonville West opened its inaugural season with a 19-25, 31-29, 20-25, 25-19, 15-4 decision at Huntsville.
Puckett finished with nine aces while Rachel Walls had a team-high nine kills for the Lady Wolverines. Kerryann Ptacek, who recently returned to the team after being sidelined with a concussion, had five kills and eight digs, while Lauren Hawks had 21 digs and Winnie Spurlock added 15 assists.
"It was a fantastic start for Lady Wolverine volleyball because the girls showed such determination and grit," West coach Julie Rowan said.
Sports on 08/26/2016