EARLY – In another epic confrontation full of ebbs and flows, the final momentum swing went in favor of the Comanche Maidens, who downed the Early Lady Horns in five sets, 23-25, 25-23, 25-22, 20-25, 15-12, in District 8-3A volleyball action Tuesday night.
Early (19-5, 1-2) – which has already surpassed last year’s win total – was upended by Comanche (3-0 in district) in the tiebreaking set of the championship match of the Heart of Texas tournament at the Brownwood Coliseum earlier this season, and the Lady Horns’ 2024 campaign was ended in a playoff play-in game by the Maidens after the two teams split their district matches.
Early’s offensive attack Tuesday was sparked by Aubrie DeVillier’s 18 kills along with 15 from Jensyn Rasor, eight from Kailyn Gallardo, three each from Ellie Shea and Grey Pruett, and two by Cassidy Frerichs.
Pruett distributed 31 assists trailed by Frerichs with six, and DeVillier with one.
Gallardo and DeVillier also served four aces each, Rasor tacked on three, and Tiffany Phelps chipped in one.
On the defensive end, DeVillier collected 24 digs trailed by Gabby Benson with 22, Gallardo with 18, Frerichs and Pruett with 11 apiece, five from Rasor, three from Shea, and one from Phelps.
At the net, Pruett and Shea logged four blocks apiece, two came from Rasor, and DeVillier notched one.
In Tuesday’s tiebreaking fifth set, there were seven ties with last coming on a kill by Rasor that knotted the score at 12. Comanche, however, reeled off the final three points – the longest string of unanswered points for either team in the final set.
The Lady Horns forced the tiebreaker with a 25-20 victory in the fourth set. Early raced out to a 9-3 advantage only for Comanche to creep within a point at 9-8. A 7-1 run by the Lady Horns resulted in their largest lead of the set, 16-9, but the Maidens closed the gap to 19-16. Comanche, however, got no closer.
The third set slipped away from Early as the Lady Horns used a 13-3 spurt to open a 21-13 advantage. Comanche, however, fired back with 10 consecutive points to surge in front, 23-21, and finished by scoring 12 of the last 13 points in the set.
The first two sets were almost even throughout as Early claimed the opener, 25-23, and Comanche answered in the second set by the same 25-23 score. The second set featured 17 ties between the two teams, and the largest lead was 6-3 by the Maidens.
The Lady Horns will next visit Breckenridge at 5:30 p.m. Thursday as they resume District 8-3A action.
