Even though they went 0-3 in 9th District seeding games this season and missed two weeks at the beginning of the year due to COVID-19 protocol, the Owensboro Catholic Lady Aces still found a way to get the job done in the 9th District Tournament.
After dropping the first set, the Lady Aces rallied back and took down top-seeded Apollo 3-1 (21-25, 26-24, 25-20, 27-25).
The match started out in a back-and-forth battle that was maintained throughout the contest, and Apollo drew first blood.
The E-gals put away the first set 25-21 as senior Brylee Rhodes came up huge in the set with back-to-back big plays to finish off the Lady Aces.
The first play, a set to the back right corner of the court, made its way past all six Lady Aces and bounced just short of the boundary line for a necessary advantage at 24-20. Two plays later, Rhodes managed to score point No. 25 on a tip that made its way over the outstretched arms of three Lady Aces and bounced just before another’s diving attempt to keep the ball in play.
The E-gals were able to ride the momentum of that first set victory deep into the second set, but the tide began to turn.
With the second set tied at 24, Catholic nabbed a pair of points to pull level on sets at one apiece, by a score of 26-24 in the frame.
The third set was dominated by Catholic, with a final score of 25-20.
Apollo did not go down quietly, however, and after falling behind 10-5 to the Lady Aces the E-gals were able to manage an 11-0 run to take a commanding 16-10 lead.
After an Owensboro Catholic timeout, however, head coach Brian Hardison’s bunch fought back to regain the lead on an 8-1 run of their own. From there the set went back and forth until finally, freshman Kennedy Murphy was able to put away the E-gals with a game-ending ace.
“Tonight was a typical postseason Apollo-Catholic matchup,” Hardison said. “I thought both teams fought really hard, and it’s simple, no one wanted to go home tonight. We’ve been working really hard, bouncing around different lineups all season, and I know that they have as well.”
Hardison was complimentary of Cate Sights, who he deemed to be the most outstanding player in the game.
“Sights is such a clutch player,” Hardison said. “She stays focused in the game and you almost don’t notice how special she is because she does it night after night.”
On the flip side of the scoreboard, Apollo head coach MaryAnne Howard lamented the missed opportunity to advance to the district finals with her six senior players.
“We had some stretches tonight where we did not execute very well,” Howard said. “When you play Catholic, there is very little room for error, and although the girls fought tooth and nail all game, we made too many mental errors to win tonight. We’ve always had a tremendous amount of fight and heart, and the girls never gave up, but we came up on the short end of the stick.”
Catholic now awaits the winner of Tuesday’s district matchup between Daviess County and Owensboro, and they hope to take home another district championship on Thursday.
