California Lady Pintos volleyball took a road trip Thursday night to go toe-to-toe with a conference and district rival, the Eldon Lady Mustangs.
California was coming off a 3-0 win over Smith Cotton on Sep. 5 while the Lady Mustangs won their first two matches of the season.
The Lady Pintos had difficulties with keeping the ball in bounds on their returns, costing them points. Eldon's hustle and defense caught California off guard with their digs and returns. The first set was close until the Lady Mustangs were able to string together a four-point run to take the first set 25-19.
California head coach Julie Bailey said it was Eldon's defense and California's unforced errors that led to losing the first set.
"They turned every ball into a ball that was either tipped or hit," Bailey said. "They did not free ball it over and we just defensively weren't always ready for that."
Things turned around for the Lady Pintos in the second set. Led by seniors Ella Bailey and Macie Trimble, the Pintos toughened up their offense and came within a point of tying the match with a 24-22 lead. However, things changed when Eldon defied the odds and scored the last four points to steal the set 26-24.
In the third set, the Lady Mustangs continued to apply the pressure with their defense, using it to get their offense into high gear. Despite their efforts, California was unable to withstand the Lady Mustangs' charge. Eldon won the third set 25-18 and swept the match 3-0.
Senior Ella Bailey finished the match with five kills, 16 digs and 15 assists Thursday night. Senior Macie Trimble had 13 kills, 14 digs, two blocks, an assist and an ace. Senior Penelope Cotten had six kills, 21 digs and an ace. Sophomore Claire Peterson had four kills, 13 digs, two assists and two blocks, Sophomore Tayte Higgins had five kills, three digs and a block. Sophomore Reagan Mosley had eight digs and 13 assists.
Coach Bailey admitted that her team is still trying to find a offensive and defensive system that works consistently. She said the Lady Pintos have improved their game over their last few matches, but they've been playing a batch of really good teams and need to enhance their game to get more wins.
"We did have a lot of unforced errors in that first set. Eldon didn't beat us, we beat ourselves in that first set," Bailey said. "We can't beat a team like that with unforced errors, but we're young. We have several girls that haven't played varsity, playing on varsity. ...We've improved a lot from just last week. Our play tonight was a lot better. We were just playing a really good team."
The Lady Pintos will be in Blair Oaks to play the Lady Falcons on Thursday night.
Democrat photo/Evan Holmes
Senior Macie Trimble had 13 kills, 14 digs, two blocks, an assist and an ace against the Eldon Lady Mustangs.
Democrat photo/Evan Holmes
Zoey Percival serves the ball to Lady Mustangs on Thursday night.
Democrat photo/Evan Holmes
Before Thursday's match against the Eldon Lady Mustangs, California listens to the National Anthem.