A win is a win any way you take it.
After crushing Fernley in the first set on Wednesday night, the Lowry High School volleyball team had to do a little extra work during Homecoming week to beat the Vaqueros. The Lady Bucks eventually won the match 25-8, 24-26, 25-17 and 25-16 to improve to 5-4 in the Northern 3A and remained in fifth place in the league.
“We came out and played great in the first set,” said LHS coach Brandon Eastman. “After that, we let down for the rest of the match and let Fernley hang around. In the end, it is a win and that is all that matters. I remember as a student, you loved Homecoming. As a coach, it is tough to get the girls focused through the week. Now I know what my coaches went through.”
The Lady Bucks used a kill and ace from Brooklyn Waller to go in front 9-6 in the opening set. After a Lowry missed serve, the Lady Bucks came back with a 13-0 run behind the serving of Kyllie Sappington. The junior had three aces during the stretch and Hannah Hillyer and Madison Montero each had two kills. Fernley stopped the spurt at 22-7, only to see Lowry score the next three points.
“I thought Kyllie played well tonight,” Eastman. “She hit the ball well and had Fernley on their heels with her tips. She is smart when it comes down to that. She sees the floor well.”
What was thought to be an easy night for Lowry quickly turned the other way in the second set. Fernley scored the first two points of the set and never trailed. The Lady Bucks tied the set at 6-6, when the Vaqueros went on a 12-5 run to go in front 18-11.
Lowry climbed its way back from the deficit to within a point at 22-21 after a kill by Hillyer and an ace by Sappington. Montero kept the set going with a kill at 23-22. Fernley had set point at 24-22, but a miss hit kept the game going. The set continued after a minute-long rally that dropped on the Fernley side of the floor after misplaying the ball. However, the Vaqueros scored the final two points to win the set.
Lowry found the momentum again in the third set, scoring four of the first five points off two kills by Montero and a tip by Brittany Jacaway.
The Vaqueros were within five points at 14-9, when the Lady Bucks went on a 5-1 run on the strength of a kill by Montero and tip by Sappington. Montero finished off the third set with a pair of kills.
The two squads traded points in the early going of the fourth set, when Lowry (5-4 Northern 3A) used a 5-0 run to pull away and lead 14-7. The Lady Bucks were in control to the end, picking up kills from Madison Montero, Hillyer and Julianne Montero. Alyssa Kuskie added an ace and Jadyn Eastman a block in the final 10 points.
Lowry swept by Truckee
Lowry was on the road last weekend and stopped at Truckee on Friday, Sept. 30. The Wolverines swept the Lady Bucks 25-20, 25-22 and 25-23.
“We went in there with the idea of stopping their best player as much as we could,” Eastman said. “Maia (Dvoracek) is just tough to stop. She is a great player and she found a way to still hurt us. It came down to just a couple mental errors on our part and Truckee took advantage.”
Lowry knocks off Sparks
Lowry ended the weekend with a 25-15, 25-9 and 25-11 win at Sparks on Saturday, Oct. 1. The Lady Bucks led 14-1 in the first set, but allowed Sparks to close the gap to 14-10.
“I called timeout and got after the girls pretty good,” Eastman said. “After a little talk, we came out and played better. It was tough to get going in an empty gym after playing Truckee the night before.”
