Lady 'Cats advance to sectional finals

MOWRYSTOWN — What was great for one Highland County team on Monday evening was bad for the other, with the Whiteoak Lady Wildcats defeating the Fairfield Lady Lions in four sets in the Division IV SE District Sectional Semifinals.

The victory against the Whiteoak Lady 'Cats wasn't easy, but they were able to play well enough against their in-county and Southern Hills Athletic Conference rival to move to the next round.

WHS won the first set by a 25-23 score, but the visiting Lady Lions followed with an identical 25-23 score to tie the match at 1-1.

From there, it was WHS who won the next two sets, but they were both close, winning via scores of 25-19 and 25-21.

"Either team could have won this match," WHS head coach Don Rahe said. "There were long volleys, and credit to both teams that they played hard, and it was an exciting match for the fans to watch.

"This match had two great comebacks … it was great to see those comebacks."

The win means WHS will face Western Latham on Thursday at 6 p.m. at Western High School.

As Rahe said, the match on Monday at Whiteoak High School was a contest that could have gone either way, including the first set where there were ties early on at 3-3, 4-4, 5-5, 6-6 and 7-7, and later at 23-23.

Both teams came out ready to play, as the scores indicate, and for those in attendance, it was evident as the Lady Lions took a 3-0 lead at the start, including an ace by Sarah Buddelmeyer.

Later in the set, FHS tied the score at 5-5 with a big-time spike from Kourtnie Smith, but then the host Lady 'Cats came back with a point for a 7-6 lead from Emma Wardlow.

Rahe said Wardlow was the biggest difference in the match for the Lady 'Cats.

"She was the difference in the game, but we had kids make timely hits when we needed them the most," he said. "Alexis (Jones) and Caitlyn (Arledge) had some nice hits.

"In the back row … most people don't realize this, but Sunnie Lehr did great in serve-receive, getting the ball back, and Kylie Douglas, Caitlyn and Makayla (Risner) all were getting the ball up. Douglas is a server you can count on."

After the score was tied at 7-7. FHS scored the next five points, with a spike from Smith, and service points (along with an ace) by Justice Hattan for a FHS lead of 12-7.

Later in the set, FHS led 23-20, but a point after the ball was hit out of play, followed by an ace by Jones and a point from Morgan Knoblauch tied the first set at 23-23.

That rally by the Lady 'Cats continued with another ace from Knoblauch and the final point being scored by Makayla Risner for the 25-23 win.

The second set was close but had a different feel to it, as Whiteoak led by as much as 14-5.

That changed once Shaylee Carson began serving for the Lady Lions.

Once it was her turn to serve, FHS went from trailing by nine points to eventually taking a 19-14 advantage, as she was a part of the Lady Lions scoring 14 consecutive points.

In that span, Carson had four aces, along with other points scored by Hattan, Tristen Collins and Casey Carter.

WHS came back to make it a 19-18 score, still in favor of the Lady Lions, and later, the Lady Lions led by a 24-19 score with a strong serve that caused the Lady 'Cats to hit the ball out of play from Carter.

WHS got to within one point of tying the score with Jones having a spike at the tip of the net, but the Lady Lions ended the set with a spike of their own off a WHS player.

"The girls played very well," FHS head coach Deanne Miller said. "All of the scores were close, and that second set we were down double figures, and Shaylee served 15 in a row for us to get there.

"I don't feel the girls were outplayed. They gave them (WHS) a game they weren't ready for. When you look at a one-win team coming in … we are learning how to finish. I'm extremely proud of my girls."

Those were the two closest scores, but the final two sets were just as competitive.

In set three, WHS jumped out to a 3-0 lead and consistently led throughout the match, including a 11-8 lead. Later, WHS led by a 23-15 score following a push over the net from Jones, and the final point was scored with FHS serving the ball out of play.

Set four began with the Lady Lions leading 4-0 with two aces from Buddelmeyer, but the match was eventually tied with the serving from Wardlow.

The Lady Lions pressured the host Lady 'Cats with points from Carter and Hattan for a 7-4 FHS advantage.

With FHS ahead 13-5, it was time for Whiteoak to have a rally, eventually tying the score at 18-18 with help from Knoblauch at 18-18 with an ace.

WHS took the lead with a spike by Sunnie Lehr, but FHS was there with a point of their own from Collins.

From there, the ball was hit out of play several times for both teams to score, but the final point was scored off a spike by Wardlow for the 25-21 set four win.

The match was the final match for FHS seniors Shaylee Carson, Justice Hattan and Tristen Collins.

"I complimented the seniors on the effort they gave," Miller said. "They weren't ready to let go. They were playing with the effort and determination that they were going to win.

"All of the girls that I played came out and played with everything they had. Through the adversity, we tried to do things a little differently and get that spark and focus. I'm proud of my seniors. The leadership was there. When one was down, the others were there to step up."

Miller also spoke about WHS.

"I wish them the best of luck in the tournament," she said. "Hopefully they can make a good tournament run."