By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
Staff Writer
Staff Writer
LOS FRESNOS — The San Benito Lady Greyhounds had Los Fresnos on the ropes during Saturday’s District 32-6A volleyball opener at the Lady Falcons’ gym.
Yet, the defending district champion Lady Falcons, sparked by senior hitter Jackie Kingsbury, refused to let the match slip away, even when San Benito appeared to be very close to pulling the upset.
With the contest split at one game apiece and San Benito ahead 22-18 in Game 3, the Lady Falcons found the resolve they needed to prevail and take the match 25-20, 21-25, 26-24, 25-14.
During the decisive third game, the Lady Greyhounds committed three unforced errors before a kill by Kingsbury created a 22-22 deadlock. There were also ties at 23 and 24 before Los Fresnos went up 25-24 as the Lady Greyhounds hit into the net. The Lady Falcons then won the third game 26-24 on a well-placed, down-the-line kill with authority by Kingsbury, a tall, all-around player who finished the day with a match-high 28 kills and 37 digs.
“We knew that they had prepared for us, but we had prepared for them as well,” said Kingsbury, a UT-Rio Grande Valley commit. “We went into the match a little unsure of what they might do and how they were going to play. We just had to stay on our toes and make sure we stuck to our game plan and did what we planned to do.”
Los Fresnos (13-13 overall) starts district at 1-0, while San Benito (8-4) begins 0-1. Still, the Lady Greyhounds sent a strong message Saturday to the rest of the district that they intend to be in the thick of the 32-6A race.
“I’m very proud of my girls and how they played,” San Benito coach Ruby Medina said. “There were times when we just let them get some easy points, and I told the girls they needed to fight a little harder. I feel that third game should have been ours, and I think it would have been a different story (regarding which team won).
“We’re a young team and our girls have a lot to learn,” Medina added. “A lot of it has to do with them not having the experience, but other than that, I’m very proud of them.”
In the opening game, San Benito pulled to within one point seven times but never came any closer as the Lady Falcons triumphed 25-20. The Lady Falcons fell behind 6-0 to start the second game and from there fought an uphill battle, trailing 10-3 and 11-4 before closing to 22-20 and 23-21. Unforced errors by the Lady Falcons near the end of the second game enabled the Lady Greyhounds to take it 25-21.
Los Fresnos fell behind 8-4 and 9-5 in the fourth game, and that’s when the Lady Falcons, along with the home crowd, began to sense that they might be in trouble. Also, that’s when the Lady Falcons began to play with more determination than ever, rallying to tie the score at 23, 24 and 25 after San Benito had gone up 22-18.
Once they saw the third game slip away, the Lady Greyhounds seemed a little downhearted and the Lady Falcons surged to advantages of 17-5, 20-8 and 24-11 en route to taking the fourth game 25-14 to clinch the match.
“I’m glad this match is over,” Lady Falcons coach Becky Woods said. “We came out strong and won that first game. The second game we didn’t do anything different and we fell apart (early). That shows you that sometimes a combination (of players) will work one game but not the second.
“San Benito played us well,” Woods added. “San Benito’s going to be right at the top of the district this year.”
Besides Kingsbury, teammate Giselle Ibarra finished with 10 kills and 11 digs, while Isis Delgado had 29 digs and 25 service receptions. Sarah Villarreal contributed 47 assists.
For San Benito, Crystal Ibarra and Alysa Naranjo had 15 and seven kills, respectively. Also for the Lady Greyhounds, Larisa Garcia had 25 digs, Kayleen Reyes had 15 assists and Arlene Lucero had five blocks.
District play continues Tuesday as Los Fresnos is at Harlingen South and San Benito is at home against Weslaco East.
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess