SAN JUAN – Kaylah Hernandez hit a thunderous kill to open the fifth set Saturday against District 31-6A rival Edinburg High.
Then she glared across the net as if to say “we’re bringing it.”
That’s exactly what the Bears did. In the fifth, however, they didn’t stop bringing it until the set, and match, were over.
After a lackadaisical fourth set that was more cute and cuddly than ferocious and terrorizing, more paddy-cake than power, Hernandez, Johanna Montelongo and a cast of come-to-life hitters exploded in the defining set en route to a PSJA 25-22, 19-25, 25-23, 23-25, 15-7 win in a battle for first place, and playoff position as the first round through district play came to a close.
“I’ve told the girls that by the time we get to the fifth set, it’s anybody’s game,” PSJA High head coach Carolina Cuellar said. “And the fifth set goes quick and you need to control the game at that point. I’m glad the girls took charge. They reset the tempo and they kept that tempo.
The Bears improved to 7-1 in district play. Edinburg High fell to 6-2. Edinburg Vela is also 7-1 in while Edinburg North is 6-2.
With a 4-2 lead in the final set, Hernandez served seven straight points, highlighted by kills from Abigail Quinones, Jocelyn Serna and Emma Pedraza and a Hernandez ace that pushed their advantage to 11-2.
PSJA High had large leads in each of the two sets the Bears won, but watched as Edinburg climbed back in the two sets it won prior to the tiebreaker. The Bears held a 21-11 lead in the first set before the Bobcats rallied for 10 straight points, with Jasmin Cuellar serving, and a 21-21 tie.
“We knew who their big servers were and we already emphasized that we needed to limit their serves to one or two,” Coach Cuellar said. “But Jasmin and (Hailey) Vega were finding where to hit and our girls were realizing how much control of the game you can have when you know how to spot serve and can do it effectively.”
That, however, didn’t continue in the fifth set. After falling in five sets to Edinburg North on Tuesday, one day after the Bears cracked the Texas Girls Coaches Association Top 25 Poll at No. 25 in Class 6A, the Bears opened and closed the set by swinging their way to victory.
“They didn’t want to lose after the loss to North,” Cuellar said. “We have nine hitters on the team and we need to utilize the. If you play scared you’re going to lose. You’ve got to swing. It was good to see them bounce back in the fifth.”
Jocelyn Serna led the Bears with a game-high 20 kills, followed by Montelongo with 16, including a back row kill that kept the Bears’ early rally in the final set going. Hernandez added seven kills to go with seven blocks, four aces and six digs in an all-round performance.
Cuellar paced Edinburg High with 18 kills, 14 blocks and three aces. Emily Carranco added nine kills to go with 14 blocks and three aces and Hailey Vega contributed a team-high five aces along with 35 assists, four kills and 16 digs.