By CLAIRE CRUZ, Staff Writer
HARLINGEN — A pair of Brownsville Veterans Memorial sophomores stepped up to lead the Lady Chargers to a five-set win over the Harlingen South Lady Hawks on Saturday.
Middle blockers Elise Fourt and Carrington Lane played crucial roles in securing the fourth and fifth sets to help the Lady Chargers stop a Lady Hawks comeback in the 25-18, 23-25, 19-25, 25-8, 15-6 match.
“We’re really coming together, and I’m really proud of the girls,” Brownsville Veterans coach Elizabeth Mares said. “I think we definitely learned some things today as a team. I told them we can’t be so confident because the other team at any time can come back, so it was great to have this kind of game.”
Fourt made her presence known early in the match, swinging primarily from the middle but also recording some kills from the outside to help Brownsville Veterans take a lead as large as nine points. Harlingen South’s hitting success came almost solely from outside hitters, and the lack of variety helped libero Sarah Gomez and the Lady Chargers’ defense pass efficiently and control the opening set.
But the Brownsville Veterans defense started struggling in the second. After jumping out to an 8-3 lead, the communication and passing started to deteriorate, and the Lady Hawks strung together an eight-point scoring run. Solid serving from Valeria Sumaya put the Lady Chargers back on top with a seven-point scoring run of their own.
South hitters Andrea Grant and Sonia Corona stepped up their play to help the Lady Hawks battle back. Their back row defense, led by libero Liaida De Jesus and Kylie Fonseca, outperformed Brownsville Veterans with diving digs and precise passes to fight from down 20-15 to tie the match with a 25-23 set win.
Lady Hawks outside hitter Mariana Garcia dominated the third set to put her team on top in the match. She used a quick, low set from Alexa Encinia to challenge the fatigued Brownsville Veterans defense.
The Lady Chargers were a step behind and playing out of system, resulting in a plethora of free balls and tips that the Lady Hawks turned into points. South’s Korynne Reininger contributed to the attack, but Garcia carried the load.
“(Garcia) was really our core, and she holds us together and keeps the ball in play for us. She’s always positive and strong, and she really held us together,” Harlingen South coach Anissa Lucio said. “I thought we played well, we just have to be more consistent. That’s the hump that we need to overcome, and I’m certain we’ll get through that. I saw that my girls have fight … and that’s what we’re going to use for this week and we’ll perfect it.”
With her team down mentally and on the scoreboard, Mares made some changes heading into the fourth set. She left Fourt in to serve instead of substituting her when she rotated into the back row, and the move paid dividends.
Fourt, who was visibly frustrated with some timing issues, maturely channeled her emotions at the service line to put her team up 14-2. She recorded five aces, including four consecutive, during the nine-point stretch with her fast-dropping jump serve. Sumaya and Gladis Espinoza led the Lady Chargers’ attack to close out the match.
“We have some young girls, and I feel that we’re still learning and having to adjust. I’ve been changing the lineup like crazy, I changed it for the fourth and the fifth, just trying to see what’s going to work and who can do the job,” Mares said. “(Fourt is) young, so there’s a lot of learning still on her part. I’m glad she didn’t fold and she got mad and took it in her own hands, which is awesome to see. She’s a great player.”
South’s defense played well to open the deciding fifth set, getting under hard swings from Brownsville Veterans to take a 6-4 lead. But Sumaya, Espinoza and Lane sparked an 11-0 run to clinch the match for the Lady Chargers. Lane was a force at the net, recording two blocks and several big swings to get the win.
“We all knew that we were better than the way we were playing and we knew we could come back and win,” Lane said. “I was telling myself ‘I have to do this for my team.’ And I was doing it for my dad, he has always been my support system and wasn’t able to make it today, so I was like, ‘This is for him.’ I did what I had to do and I put the ball down. After not being able to do a lot of practicing, it feels amazing to be able to come back and kick butt and show we still got this.”