WINNEMUCCA - With the defending Division I-A state champions in town last Friday night, the Lowry High School varsity volleyball team was looking to prove to the rest of the league that it belongs among the elite teams.
The Lady Bucks and Vikings provided an exciting five-set match for the Winnemucca fans with South Tahoe escaping with a 25-21, 26-28, 26-28, 25-15 and 15-7 victory.
"It was a tough one to lose," said LHS head coach Megan Allen. "We had them beat. We just let it get away from us in the fourth game and we couldn't recover from there. We got down early in the fifth game and when you only play to 15 it is hard to recover."
Lowry (3-3 Division I-A North, 9-11 overall) scored four of the first five points of the opening set with the aid of a tip by Jillian Albright and a kill by Juliana Velasco. Velasco, a sophomore, later added another kill and an ace to put the Lady Bucks up 8-3.
South Tahoe battled back to take its first lead at 14-13, only to see Lowry regain the lead at 19-15 after an ace by Sierra Thiede. The Vikings called a timeout at the point and after the break the momentum shifted with South Tahoe scoring 10 of the next 12 points to win the set.
The Vikings used that energy from the end of the first set to lead 10-3 in the second set. After a Lady Bucks' timeout, Lowry rallied to cut the deficit to 14-12 after a kill and block by Meg Montero. The Lady Bucks took their first lead at 17-16 on a tip by Albright and once again at 18-17 on a kill by Allison Barron.
With the set tied at 19-19, Lowry went on a 5-1 run and had set point in front of it, only to see South Tahoe reel off six straight points to lead 25-24. The Lady Bucks bounced back with two straight points, the latter on a kill by Montero to go up 26-25. The Vikings came back to tie the set at 26-26, but gave the advantage back to Lowry after missing a serve. Moments later, Thiede provided the Lady Bucks with the win on a kill.
The third set was a back and forth affair with Lowry leading 8-4 after an ace by Velasco. South Tahoe fought back to tie it at 8-8, when Lowry went on a 10-4 run capped off by a block by Velasco.
The Lady Bucks led 20-15 late in the set, but once again the Vikings made a run and jumped back in front at 23-21. However, two service errors came back to haunt South Tahoe, allowing Lowry to stay in the set.
Trailing 24-23, Albright and Velasco provided the Lady Bucks with back-to-back kills to put Lowry in front at 25-24. With set point on the line, the Lady Bucks missed a serve but fought back with points from Velasco and Albright to win the set.
"The second and third sets showed a lot about us and how the girls came back from being at set point," Allen said. "We fought hard and I was proud of that."
Lowry seemed to have the momentum in the fourth set after a combo block by Payton Naveran and Montero gave them an 8-4 lead. South Tahoe came back to tie the set and 11-11 and dominated from there, scoring 14 of the final 19 points to tie the match at two sets apiece.
"South Tahoe was just a scrappy team," added the coach. "Everything that we put over the net, they went and got it. They were all over the floor."
The Lady Bucks started slowly in the fifth set with the Vikings racing out to a 6-2 lead. Lowry closed within three points at 8-5 after a South Tahoe hitting error but could not get any closer.
Lowry returns to the floor tonight at home against Elko at 6 p.m. The Lady Bucks are promoting a "Pack the House" night and are looking to fill the gym against their rivals.
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