BOAZ, Ala. — It was a perfect showing in the Snead State Invitational for the Pearl River volleyball team as the Wildcats defeated Snead State 3-1 (25-22, 23-25, 25-16, 25-21) and Bevill State 3-2 (27-25, 25-14, 25-7, 18-25, 15-8). The victories made it a 4-0 weekend for the Wildcats and extended their win streak to eight matches.
"I'm super proud of a five-win, three-day stretch of matches," head coach Haley Chatham said. "We fought an uphill battle the entire way, but getting to see these players doing things they may not have known they could do — that's what it's all about.
"Everyone did a great job of filling roles and carrying the load while leaning on our strengths."
PEARL RIVER 3, SNEAD STATE 1.
Jolee Gibson (Brandon) set the tone for Pearl River (19-12 overall) right from the start of the match as the sophomore's serve clipped the top of the net and fell to the floor for an ace. Snead State (20-14) evened things right back up as a back-and-forth battle took place, 7-7. Pearl River pulled ahead 14-8 to force a Parson timeout. Out of the timeout, the Wildcats continued to put the pressure on as they jumped ahead 18-13. Finally, PRCC put an end to the set, 25-22.
Snead State needed a response in the second set and did just that. SSCC jumped ahead 3-0 quickly, but Pearl River roared back to even things up, 3-3. The Parsons took it up a notch in the middle portion of the set, building out a 15-9 lead midway through. The Wildcats tried to fight back late in the set, but Snead State finished off the victory, 25-23.
Pearl River went ahead 5-3 early in the third set thanks to a forceful kill off the right hand of Natalie Bartholomew (Brandon). PRCC maintained a two-point lead, 9-7, soon after when Sammie Smith (Biloxi; D'Iberville) mashed a kill through a block attempt and down onto the court. The Wildcats followed with a nice run to swell the advantage to 18-12 and eventually put the set to bed, 25-16.
The momentum gained in the third set seemed to carry over into the fourth set of the day as PRCC rattled off an impressive seven consecutive points to start. The Parsons battled back to cut their deficit to four points at 10-6 and then again at 15-11. Snead State didn't go down easily, fighting back to square up the game at 21-21 late. Thankfully for PRCC, Smith was up for the challenge. She first rocketed a kill off a block attempt that flew behind her and out of bounds for a point. A couple of plays later, Smith sent a kill off the hand of a block and out of bounds on the Parsons' side of the court. Finally, the Wildcats finished off the set 25-21 to win the match.
PEARL RIVER 3, BEVILL STATE 2.
The Wildcats and Bevill State (6-24) were in a fight right from the start as the teams found themselves locked at 7-7 on a Bartholomew ace. After trading points for a while, the score sat at 14-14. BSCC maintained a slim 22-21 lead late in the set as Madi King (Leakesville; Greene County) went up and picked up a huge solo block. PRCC fought back to tie things up at 25-25, but the Bears took the set, 27-25.
Pearl River responded in a big way in the second set, moving ahead 10-5 rather quickly. The lead swelled to 17-9 late when the Bears sent a kill attempt flying out of bounds. Pearl River received a strong showing from its hitters to wrap up the set. Annalaura Williford (Bay St. Louis; Our Lady Academy) picked up a kill, and Smith followed it up by sending a scorching kill through the hands of the BSCC libero. Another Smith kill got the Wildcats to set point, and a combination block ended things, 25-14.
The third set was all Wildcats from start to finish. Right off the bat, Pearl River's advantage swelled to an incredible 12-3 on the back of a Delaney Sisson (Auburn, Ala.) ace and a Smith kill off the hand of an outstretched Bears player. PRCC put the pedal to the floor and ran away with the set, 25-7.
Pearl River was in an early hole to begin the fourth set as Bevill State cruised out to a 10-0 advantage. The Wildcats tried to claw their way back into the match, moving within eight points late at 21-13. The Bears walked away with a 25-18 victory to extend the match for one more set.
Although the teams were locked at 2-2 early in the final set of the day, the Wildcats began to run away with things shortly after. The Bears blocked a Wildcat kill attempt, but it went out of bounds, 4-2. Peyton Hoffmayer (Ocean Springs) made the score 9-4 when she crushed a kill off the hands of a BSCC player at the back of the rotation. The lead grew to 13-7, and Pearl River finally ended it with a Smith block, 15-8.
UP NEXT
Pearl River returns to action Monday for the final home match of the regular season against Northeast. The 5 p.m. match will also serve as Pearl River's Sophomore Night.
TICKETS
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