SPRINGDALE -- Coming off a long weekend of tournament play at Jenks (Okla.), Springdale Har-Ber volleyball coach Shyrah Schisler was unsure how her girls' legs would react.
But Har-Ber got contributions from a handful of players in a 25-17, 25-19, 25-18 sweep of Springdale High (9-6-1, 4-5 7A-West) in Wildcat Arena, improving to 17-6 overall and 7-2 in league matches.
"I love that we're coming back and finding different ways to be successful, and playing new people in new positions," Schisler said. "Getting two wins off the first week of conference is big for us. We get Bentonville on Tuesday, and they'll be here, so it should be fun for us."
Senior Lauren Thompson led the Lady Wildcats with 16 kills, 15 digs and three aces. Tied at seven in the first set, Thompson delivered a pair of aces to create separation for Har-Ber. Late in the second set, she recorded her final ace, extending the lead to 21-17 following a 17-17 stalemate.
"Finding the balance and not getting stuck in a situation and turning it around quickly, we did a good job of that tonight," Schisler said. "Whenever they were pushed, they responded."
Jayci Carpenter finished with nine kills and Natalie Williams tallied 21 assists and nine digs for Har-Ber as well. For Springdale, Zoe Schmidt had eight kills and 13 digs while KeKe Turner added eight kills and six blocks. Lady Red'Dogs coach Meagan Thompson was happy to see Turner come out aggressive in the match.
"Honestly, it's something I've been talking to her about, just playing her game," she said. "I was really pleased that she came out here and did that tonight. To come out during a tough match and turn it on is something we've been looking for her to do."
This weekend, Springdale and Har-Ber will travel to the Fort Smith Invitational. Schisler and Har-Ber have found a good bit of success in the River Valley in the past.
"The last three years I think we've been in the finals, so we're going to go and give all we've got and see some teams from the 7A-Central Conference," Schisler said. "It's a good time of year before state tournament comes around."
Springdale's Kaleigh Breathitt finished with 21 digs while Schmidt and Jessie Davis had 13 and 12, respectively.
Rogers High 3, Rogers Heritage 0
Hannah Martin had a team-best seven kills and 24 assists to lead the Lady Mounties to a 25-16, 25-16, 25-14 win over Rogers Heritage.
Kassidy Wall and Taylor Voight chipped in five kills each for the Lady Mounties (10-16, 3-6 7A-West), while Madison McCarty contributed three aces and Emily Harris two blocks.
Bentonville High 3, Van Buren 0
Emma Palasak had 16 kills and nine digs to lead Bentonville its 16th consecutive victory with a 25-18, 25-16, 25-22 decision over Van Buren in Tiger Arena.
Tymber Riley added seven kills and 11 assists, while Baylee Barganier had 31 assists for the Lady Tigers (20-4, 9-0).
Alex Dupree had eight kills and four aces for Van Buren (9-9-1, 3-6), which rallied to tie Bentonville at 22 in the third set before Grayce Joyce's third block of the match broke the tie, then she and Palasak each had a kill to cap the match.
Siloam Springs 3, Clarksville 0
The Lady Panthers bounced back from a 3-0 loss to Harrison on Tuesday with a sweep victory Thursday at Clarksville 25-21, 25-16, 25-12.
Ellie Lampton and Shaylon Sharp each had five kills, two aces and three digs for the Lady Panthers (9-11, 6-3 5A/6A District 1).
Allie Bowman had four kills, while Reigan Brown had three kills and one block and Katie Kendrick two kills.
Madison Hall contributed six aces and five digs, while Chloe Price had four aces, 11 digs and 19 assists.
Shiloh Christian 3, Prairie Grove 0
Lexi Richards hammered down 10 kills to lead Shiloh Christian to the program's 58th consecutive 4A-1 Conference match win in a 25-6, 25-10, 25-8 sweep of Prairie Grove.
Taylor Richardson added 12 digs for the Lady Saints (11-7, 10-0 4A-1). Jordan Rochelle had six blocks and five kills. Jentry Lantzsch and Hattie McDonald combined for 11 ace serves and 23 assists.
Shiloh Christian returns to the court in the Fort Smith Invitational on Saturday. The Lady Saints will open against Bentonville West.
Sports on 09/29/2017