The Bandera Bulldogs put up quite the fight on August 25, but fell to the Varsity Arabians in five sets. Devine took the first set 25-23 but then dropped the next two at 15-25 and 24-26. In the fourth set, they fought hard to take the win at 25-21 to force a fifth set. The Arabians never let off the pressure and took the win at 15-10 and send Bandera home.
“The girls did an amazing job tonight,” Coach Leigh Anne McIver said. “They could have thrown in the towel easily but they didn’t. They shook off set 2 and 3 and started to really compete in the last 2 sets. They really pulled together and supported each other.
“We had a great night of blocking. Our front row girls got lots of touches and solo blocks. We also had some really great plays from our back row. We really limited our errors when it really counted.”
Kills: Megan Runyan 10, Rylee Esquibel 10, Bailey Oropeza 2, Aleyna Gerlach 2, Madison Pike 10. Aces: Esquibel 1, Kristina Moralez 2, Oropeza 3. Blocks: Runyan 1, Darian Alvarez 1, Pike 6. Digs: Alliston Stevens 1, Esquibel 6, Moralez 16, Oropeza 10, Lacey Shook 7, Gerlach 1, Pike 1. Assists: Stevens 14, Esquibel 12.
In their double header against Llano and Salado on Saturday, the Arabians impressed everyone with a double win. Facing Llano first, the Arabians took the game in three sets at 25-11, 25-16, and 25-15.
“The girls really were able to take control of this game from the get go,” Coach McIver said. “We lost our focus some during the 2nd and 3rd match but the regained it and took the win. They really looked good out there together and we are seeing a lot more chemistry on the court.”
Kills: Runyan 10, Esquibel 2, Alvarez 1, Gerlach 2, Pike 10. Aces: Stevens 2, Esquibel 2, Oropeza 2, Pike 2. Blocks: Oropeza 2, Alvarez 1, Pike 1. Digs: Stevens 1, Runyan 2, Esquibel 5, Moralez 10, Oropeza 6, Shook 2. Assists: Stevens 7, Esquibel 16.
In their second match against Salado, the Arabians won after a tough fight.
“We came out on fire in the first set and lost our focus in the second,” Coach McIver said. “We got our focus back in the 3rd but made errors right at the end of the match. The girls dug down deep in the 4th to pull it out and had to kick in into 5th gear for the 5th set.
“I am very proud of them for not letting how tired they were to get in the way. They really showed a lot of mental toughness in this game.”
Kills: Runyan 14, Esquibel 14, Oropeza 5, Alvarez 1, Gerlach 1, Pike 13. Aces: Esquibel 1, Moralez 1, Oropeza 1. Blocks: Runyan 1, Oropeza 1, Pike 1. Digs: Stevens 4, Runyan 3, Esquibel 2, Moralez 23, Oropeza 5, Shook 3, Gerlach 1. Assists: Stevens 20, Esquibel 26.
The Arabians will play at home against Marion on Friday night and in Navarro Tuesday. Next Friday they will play in Hondo.
By Dicy Chambers
Sports Writer