ROGERS -- Rogers High struggled to find an early rhythm offensively, but the Lady Mounties finished strong Thursday evening.
Rogers trailed 2-1, but trailed only briefly in the fourth set and not at all in the fifth to earn a hard-fought 19-25, 25-20, 19-25, 25-20, 15-13 6A-West Conference win over Bentonville West at the new Rogers Mountie Arena.
Rogers coach Christina Lawrence said her young team, which includes three freshmen in the lineup, learned valuable lesson.
"We had our moment where we were doing great. We had our runs," Lawrence said. "But staying consistent is a key for us this season. We learned kinda the hard way with a team like West. They work their butts off. They're coached well. So they know what they're doing.
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"They won't give up and they kept coming at us, so props to them. We ended up coming out on top at the end. We had some crazy stuff happen. That's just part of volleyball. Props to my girls, too, because in the past we'd crumble in a situation like that."
Senior Abby Harris finished with 12 kills and 20 assists. She came up big late -- accounting for three of the Lady Mounties' final five points with kills after the Lady Wolverines pulled within 10-9 in the fifth set.
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Senior Lakyn Hawthorne finished with a match-high 14 kills for the Lady Mounties (7-4, 1-2 6A-West). Madison Rhea led the Rogers defense with 14 digs and freshman Kaitlyn Brady served up a match-high five aces.
Trinity Luckett, a 6-1 junior, led West (3-8, 1-2) with 13 kills, while senior Reagan Ptacek added eight kills and tied for match honors with 14 digs. Riley Richardson added seven kills and a match-high five blocks.
Rogers scored five straight points to turn an 11-9 deficit into 14-11 lead midway through the fourth set and never trailed again. But West didn't go quietly in the see-saw marathon match that last more than two hours.
Trailing 19-18, the Lady Wolverines, who were missing two starters because of injuries, grabbed momentum near the end of the third set, scoring eight of the last nine points to take the 2-1 lead.
West wiped out a 10-point deficit in the second set and grabbed a brief 19-18 lead, but the Lady Mounties responded with a 7-2 run to finish the set and square the match at 1-1.
Rogers trailed most of the opening set before tying the score at 14, but an 8-1 run put the Lady Wolverines back in control en route to the win.
Fayetteville 3, Fort Smith Southside 1
The Lady Purple Bulldogs bounced after dropping the opening set to earn a 16-25, 25-14, 25-18, 25-16 6A-West road win over the Mavericks.
Brooke Rockwell finished with a match-high 24 kills for Fayetteville (6-1, 3-0 6A-West), while Maddie LaFata added 10. Libero Ashley Ruff anchored the defense with 16 digs.
Toree Tiffee and Olivia Melton each put up double-doubles for Southside. Tiffee led the way offensively with 14 kills along with 11 digs. Melton added 12 kills and team-best 15 digs. Kennedy Meadors dished out 28 assists.
Springdale Har-Ber 3, Springdale High 0
The Lady Wildcats (11-0, 3-0 6A-West) remained undefeated with a 25-9, 25-17, 25-16 win over their crosstown rival.
Kyla Clubb led the attack with 12 kills, while setter Caylan Koons dished out 22 assists for Har-Ber (11-0, 3-0 6A-West). Kat Cooper added nine kills and Kinleigh Hall finished with five blocks. Galatia Andrew also contributed four aces and seven digs.
Greenwood 3, Van Buren 2
Sophomore Myia McCoy cranked 23 kills to help the Lady Bulldogs earn a tough 25-14, 25-20, 18-25, 23-25, 15-9 win over the Lady Pointers in 5A-West Conference play.
Landis Luke added 10 kills and four solo blocks for Greenwood, while Rylie Holland dished out 19 assists and added five digs. Tori Howard led the defense with 15 digs.
Shiloh Christian 3, Farmington 0
Ryan Russell hammered 18 kills to lead the Lady Saints to a 25-15, 25-22, 25-21 win over the Lady Cardinals.
Laila Creighton dished out 34 assists to go with seven kills and two aces, while Rylee Kallesen served up five aces for Shiloh Christian (10-2-1, 5-0 4A-Northwest). Bella Bonanno also added 12 digs.
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6A-West Volleyball
Team;Conf.;Overall
Springdale Har-Ber;11-0;3-0
Fayetteville;6-1;3-0
FS Southside;7-3-2;2-1
Bentonville;7-3;1-2
Rogers;7-4;1-2
Bentonville West;3-8;1-2
Springdale;5-2;1-2
Rogers Heritage;2-10;0-3
Thursday’s Scores
Rogers High def. Bentonville West, 3-2.
Bentonville def. Rogers Heritage, 3-0.
Springdale Har-Ber def. Springdale High, 3-0.
Fayetteville def. Fort Smith Southside, 3-1.
