It wasn’t easy, but Apollo’s fierce attack had just enough to get past Owensboro Catholic in an intense five-set battle in Tuesday night’s 9th District volleyball match.
After dropping the opening frame, the E-Gals battled back for a 3-2 (22-25, 25-23, 29-27, 21-25, 15-11) win at home, avenging a loss to the Lady Aces from earlier this season.
The teams nearly matched each other point-for-point in the tiebreak set, though the E-Gals seized control at the service game of Hallie Wilson. Her ace tied the set at 8-8, and Apollo took the next three points for a late advantage.
A dig by Tallie Satterfield went over the net and found a hole up the line to create match point for the E-Gals, and Brylee Rhodes won a point at the net to seal the victory.
“That was a huge win,” said Apollo head coach MaryAnne Howard. “Our girls were really motivated after the first matchup between us. Our girls felt like we didn’t play to our best capability then.”
After also dropping a district game to Daviess County last week, Apollo (13-6, 2-2 9th District) was eager to prove themselves as equal competition.
“We really came out aggressive,” Howard said. “That was our game plan. I was really pleased. You could tell we were really hitting the ball, and our passing was phenomenal. I was really excited for the fight that our girls showed.”
Though they battled back and forth in the opening set, it was Owensboro Catholic (13-8, 3-1) who earned the early advantage.
Apollo immediately answered, using a short run to create separation late in the second frame. After Catholic fought off two set points, Whitley Chambers earned the winning point with a cross-court smash that hit the right line.
Each team had a couple of set points in the third, with the E-Gals finally able to capitalize. They missed their first chance at 25-24, but the Lady Aces weren’t able to convert their two opportunities.
“(Apollo) came out to play, but we made way too many unforced errors and missed way too many serves,” said Catholic head coach Brian Hardison. “To be honest, we didn’t come out here to finish the match. We got to a certain point and it’s almost like we panicked.”
The Lady Aces were still able to bounce back, leading nearly the entire way in the fourth set. Apollo made a late push, but Catholic was able to even the match at two sets each.
“Catholic is a great team,” Howard said. “They have some amazing offensive players, and we knew they were going to make big plays. We talked about making sure we limited that as best we could. They still got some great hits on us. We just tried to make little runs when we could.”
Hardison was disappointed that the Lady Aces dropped a district game, but he’s still happy to be atop the standings.
“It’s time to regroup,” he said. “We wanted to be undefeated, but we’re still sitting on top. We have to come in and refocus.”
Apollo was led by Rhodes (12 kills, 6 blocks), Natalie Ewing (16 kills), Chambers (10 kills), Satterfield (39 assists), Wilson (23 digs, 3 aces), Anslee Hopewell (10 digs, 3 kills) and Abby Spong (12 digs).
Catholic’s efforts were led by Cecilia Clemens (49 assists, 10 kills, 7 blocks, 2 digs), Belle Wright (19 kills, 9 digs, 3 blocks), Cassidy Towery (22 kills, 10 digs), Madeline Castlen (11 kills, 3 blocks), Jenna Glenn (10 digs, 3 aces), Cate Sights (7 kills, 5 blocks) and Allie Hamilton (5 kills, 3 digs, 2 blocks).
The E-Gals play again Thursday at Caldwell County, while the Lady Aces are off until Tuesday when they travel to Daviess County.
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