Volleyball
It’s too bad coming close doesn’t count in volleyball.
The No. 14-state ranked Sulphur Springs Lady Cats exchanged points all night with Wylie East but came up on the short end of a 3-0 sweep Tuesday at the Sulphur Springs High School gym.
The visiting Raiders took the match, 25-20, 25-21 and 25-21.
“We played them before in a tournament, and they gave us some tough competition. We lost to a talented team with good hitters,” said Bailey Dorner, Sulphur Springs head volleyball coach.
The Raiders advanced to 13-12 with the win. The Lady Cats fell to 18-10.
Sadie Washburn paced the Lady Cats with 14 kills. Brooklyn Burnside converted seven of 14 kills (50%) in the match. Czhela Moya contributed 12 digs, and Peyton Hammack recorded 25 assists.
In the opening set the home fell behind early.
Wylie East padded a 8-7 lead to a 17-10 advantage with a flurry of points and strong net play. Sulphur Springs came roaring back with 5 straight points fueled by kills at the net by Washburn and strong serving from Kate Womack. The Raiders rallied late to claim the first set 25-20.
The second set was an even battle on both sides. The score was tied on 10 occasions. Late in the match Wylie East used pinpoint shot placement and kills to go on a 7-3 scoring run to win by a 25-21 final.
The third and decided set went to Wylie East as well, but the Lady Cats went down swinging. Sulphur Springs had strong net play from Burnside and Washburn along with serves by Hammack and Womack. With the game tied at 21, the visitors closed out the set and match with a flourish scoring 4 straight points to secure the victory in straight sets.
In sub-varsity action: Sulphur Springs lost 17-25, 25-22 and 19-25 in JV play while the freshmen Lady Cats fell by scores of 19-25, 25-18 and 22-25.
The Lady Cats are idle Friday and will return to action Tuesday against Nevada Community Tuesday on the road.
Sulphur Springs will start district play, Friday, Sept. 27 at home against Royse City. The varsity game will start at 5 p.m. with sub-varsity to follow.