By Moses Leos III
Tuesday night, the Lady Rebel volleyball team defeated Bandera in four sets (25-16, 25-12, 24-26, 25-18) at Bales Gym.
Senior Melanie Harrington led the team with 16 kills on the night. Junior Madison McCauley helped defensively with 14 digs, and junior Lexa Mikulenka had 42 assists.
More than 30 teams from near and far converged on Hays High School for the annual Rebel Bash Volleyball tournament last Thursday and Saturday.
Hays opened the weekend by making a statement. The team swept through the first day of the tournament, winning four straight matches without dropping a set.
The girls did so without one of their star players. Senior Sydney Paradeaux was sidelined for most of the tournament with an injury.
Even so, Hays prevailed. The experience of playing four games in one day was enthralling for the athletes.
“Playing four games [in one day] is tough, but it’s fun,” junior Madison McCauley said.
Success was harder to find in the Saturday morning session with increased competition. Hays took on Pflugerville Connally and LaGrange, both currently ranked seventh in the 3A Texas Girls Coaches’ Association (TGCA) poll.
The Lady Rebels fell to both teams, dropping all four sets. Head coach Erica Walther knows how tough the task was to earn a win. Ultimately, she was content with the team’s effort on the court.
“[Connally and LaGrange] were the two best teams we saw in this tournament. We played well with them, but we didn’t do the little things.” Walther said. “They outplayed us. But I was proud of the performance our girls gave in those games.”
Losses to Connally and LaGrange pushed Hays into the Bronze bracket. Hays rebounded to claim the bracket title.
The Hays girls began the afternoon session by defeating West in straight sets. It was followed with a dominating straight set victory over Bastrop; the second time Hays had swept the Lady Bears in the tournament.
Junior Shannon Park was happy the team ended the tournament on a high note. While there is some room for improvement, she was glad the team pulled together to fill the absence of Paradeaux.
“We realized we did not have a person to lean on as much,” Park said. “There was more conversation and we tried to figure out how we could get the other team out of system. It worked well for us.”
Park led the team with 68 kills in the tournament. Junior Kathryn Wristen had 199 assists.
Hays opens district play against Boerne Champion at home on Friday. The match is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
