The Lowry High School volleyball team couldn’t of had two different matches last week to begin play in the Division I-A North.
The Lady Bucks made the short trip to Fallon this past Thursday to face rival Churchill County. Every set was close, but Lowry pulled out a four-set victory 25-18, 19-25, 26-24 and 25-23 to start league play on a high note.
“That was a big win for us,” said LHS coach Megan Allen. “They had an enthusiastic crowd there. We had a chance to see them in Reno the week before. They are improved from last year. It’s always good to get a win in a tough environment.”
Juliana Velasco had 10 kills for the Lady Bucks, Ashlee Barron added eight and Madison Montero seven. Chelsea Herrera and Sierra Thiede had four and two kills, respectively.
It was a different story on Friday, as Lowry made its home debut and crushed Fernley in three sets, 25-5, 25-21 and 25-12. The Lady Bucks were never seriously challenged by the Vaqueros.
“We came out in the first set and took care of business,” Allen said. “We got out to a nice lead and put them away when we had the chance. That is what we need to do when we have leads like that.”
Lowry scored the first seven points of the first set, getting contributions from a number of girls. Barron got the rally going with a tip in the open floor and Jillian Albright and Velasco added kills to make the score 5-0. An ace by Thiede and another kill by Velasco pushed the advantage to 7-0.
The Vaqueros stopped the run, but it was short-lived as Montero and Velasco dominated at the net, pushing the lead to 17-3, as the Vaqueros had no answer for the duo. Hannah Hillyer and Brooklyn Waller added kills late in the set to lead the Lady Bucks to the easy victory.
Fernley scored the first two points of the second set, when Barron provided a kill and an ace by Albright tied the set. The Lady Bucks collected two kills from Montero and another by Waller to go in front 7-4. Lowry looked to be on cruise control once again, as Fernley took a timeout after a kill by Hillyer made the score 13-5.
However, with a new group of players on the floor, the Lady Bucks saw the advantage go away, as the Vaqueros used an 11-2 run to pull ahead 16-15. The set was tied three times from there at 16, 17 and 18, before Lowry pulled away with a 5-0 run and scored the winning point on a Fernley hitting error.
“We just have to learn to play through that,” said the coach. “The girls hit a little lull and Fernley took advantage of it. We were able to settle down and come back.”
Lowry (11-5 overall, 2-0 Division I-A North) notched the first three points of the third and final set, only to see Fernley hang around in the early going. The Vaqueros erased a four-point deficit, but Hillyer got the Lady Bucks going with a kill, starting a 5-0 run to increase the lead to 15-9.
Hillyer along with fellow junior Aimee Brandon, who added three kills of her own, late in the third set sealed the victory. Hillyer also had an ace in the late going.
“I was happy with the way we played,” Allen said. “It was a chance for me to play everyone.”
Lowry will hit the road this weekend for two tough contests. The Lady Bucks face South on on Friday at 6 p.m. and Dayton on Saturday at noon. Dayton beat Lowry in three sets earlier in the year at the Yerington Invitational.
“These will be big matches,” Allen said. “They are both tough places to play at. We will have to be ready to go.”
