PENSACOLA, Fla. — The Pearl River volleyball team dropped their first match of the season against a strong opponent in Pensacola State on Thursday. The Wildcats faced the Pirates in the first game of the Pensacola State Tournament, splitting the first two sets before dropping the last two for a 3-1 result (21-25, 25-19, 20-25, 16-25).

"Pensacola State was so well prepared, and they definitely beat us speed-wise at the net," Pearl River head coach Haley Chatham said. "We tried a couple of different combinations with matchups, but we just couldn't quite settle into one that really worked for us. We served well but just weren't able to string more than four points together when we had the ball.

"Even still, we were competitive and were able to find ways to score. Abbie Franks had a good night defensively and I am happy to see her committing to playing aggressive defense. Allie Varner (Madison, Miss.; Germantown) put herself in position to play good defense."

SET ONE

Pearl River (5-1) and Pensacola State (6-1) struggled to find momentum in the first set. After conceding the opening point, Sammie Smith (Biloxi; D'Iberville) put the Wildcats on the board with a strong kill to tie the game, 1-1. Smith followed with a service ace to give Pearl River an early 2-1 lead.

Both teams traded points throughout the first set, and a couple of Abbie Franks (Ocean Springs) blocks helped the Wildcats stay within striking distance.

With the first set tied 17-17, a Smith block gave the Wildcats the advantage on the point, and Addie McNeely (Brandon, Miss.; Hartfield Academy) closed out the point with an impressive spike past the Pirate defenders, 18-17.

After trading points, the Pirates turned the tide and took a five-point run to take a 24-19 lead. Pensacola State closed out the set 25-21.

SET TWO

The Pirates carried the momentum created at the end of set one to jump out to a 3-0 lead in set two. The Wildcats cut the lead to 4-3 before the Pirates relied on a five-point run to extend the lead 9-3. The Wildcats clawed back into the set behind the net play of Franks and Natalie Bartholomew (Bradon). Franks tapped the ball over the net, and Bartholomew sent a rocket over the net to reduce the deficit to three, 10-7. Later in the set, Franks produced two more strong plays, a nice block on a Pirate kill attempt and a strong kill past the defense at the net to keep the Pirate lead at three, 13-10.

After Smith and McNeely blocked a Pirate spike, Pearl River cut the lead to one. Smith followed on the next point to bring the score to 14-13.

The Wildcats battled to take the 23-19 lead after Smith rewarded a tremendous defensive effort with a strong kill. On the play, the Pearl River defense had two great saves on Pirate spikes to set up Smith's spike. Smith closed out the set with a block to give the Wildcats the set, 25-19.

SET THREE

The third set was more of the same for the Wildcats and Pirates, as both teams traded points early in the set. Smith and Bartholomew continued their strong play as the net. Following a Jolie Gibson (Brandon) ace to open up the set, Smith scored on two strong spikes to give the Wildcats a 3-1 lead.

After falling behind, 6-4, Bartholomew tied the set at six apiece with two kill shots, the second falling just inside the line for the point.

Pearl River battled back from two five-point deficits to tie the set, 16-16. The Wildcats took the lead, 20-19, after a service error on the Pirates. Pensacola closed out the set on a five-point run, 25-20.

SET FOUR

The Pirates jumped out to an early 6-3 lead in the fourth set. Strong serving by Gibson gave the Wildcats a 7-6 lead. On the four-point run, Gibson had two service aces, with the second ace hitting a Pirate on the end line.

Another three-point Wildcat run highlighted with a McNeely ace and two Bartholomew kills gave Pearl River a 13-10 advantage.

Two big runs by the Pirates provided Pensacola the momentum they needed to seal the victory, 25-16.

NEXT UP

The Wildcats will continue to play in the Pensacola Tournament on Friday. Pearl River will face Roane State and Gadsden State at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.

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