RUSK — The Diboll Ladyjacks volleyball team was a single point away from a Game 2 win that might have broken Mexia's spirit and propelled the Ladyjacks into the next round of playoff competition.
Instead, trailing 24-21, the Lady Cats roared back to score the next five points to take the 26-24 win and yank momentum onto their side of the court. Mexia then won the final two games to eliminate the Ladyjacks 25-15, 24-26, 14-25 and 18-25 in Thursday's bi-district action in Rusk.
Gary Stallard |
Diboll's Mary Compean serves against Mexia during Thursday's bi-district round action in Rusk. The Ladyjacks saw their dream season end with a 25-15, 24-26, 14-25, 18-25 loss to the Lady Cats.
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"Both teams were so evenly matched," Diboll head coach Jeremy Stewart said afterward. "We hit, they hit; we jumped, they jumped; we returned, they returned. I told our kids it would come down to whichever team made the fewest mistakes, and tonight that was Mexia."
Niecy Deason led the Ladyjacks with 37 assists. Meredith Ruby led the team in kills with 15, while Chelsea Burns added 13 kills and 17 digs. Kayla Martel added four kills and 10 digs, and Tiffany Mott pitched in with nine kills and seven blocks.
All those stats seemingly would have been more than enough to allow Diboll to advance to yet another round; but after the Game 2 loss, the team just couldn't seem to make the same breaks they'd made in the 25-15 Game 1 win.
"I don't know if we just felt overconfident after the first game, or if we just wore ourselves out from being so pumped up," Stewart said, "but we just couldn't seem to find the same rhythm or make the same plays we made earlier."
The opening game saw the two teams knotted at 9-9 before Burns, Mott and Martel combined for four kills over the next six points to extend the lead. A pair of Burns aces late helped the Ladyjacks close out the game in fairly easy 25-15 fashion.
But the turning point came late in Game 2. Diboll, trailing 12-19, roared back behind Ruby's serves and kills from Martel and Mott. Mott then served seven straight service points to push the Ladyjacks to a game-point, 24-21 lead. But after a side out, Mexia's Kendle Brizendine collected the next five service points to lead the Lady Cats to the 26-24 win.
After dropping Game 3, 14-25, the Ladyjacks maintained a lead through most of the fourth game. But a series of unforced errors allowed the Lady Cats to take the lead at 16-15 and cruise the rest of the way into the area round.
"These girls have absolutely no reason to hang their heads tonight," Stewart said. "We just finished one of the best seasons in the past 10 years, and we accomplished our early goal of advancing past the first round.
"I'm extremely proud of their efforts and the season they had. I just wish we could have kept it going."
Diboll ends its season at 26-16.
