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McKieran Murphy (3) returns a serve with Lauren Morris providing backup Tuesday, Oct. 29 during Perrin’s loss to Garner. Photo/Brian Smith -
Lucchese Reilly sets the ball Tuesday, Oct. 29 as part of the regular season finale for Perrin. The Lady Pirates lost to Garner in straight sets. Photo/Brian Smith
Heading into the playoffs, a good test is always welcomed.
Perrin received just that Tuesday, Oct. 29 from visiting Garner’s volleyball team. The Lady Longhorns gave Perrin everything they wanted and more in beating the Lady Pirates 3-0. Perrin Coach Rebekah Bland gave credit where credit is due.
“They’re good … and that’s just what we needed heading into the playoffs,” Bland said. “It was a tough game, but we showed we can play with good teams.”
The Lady Pirates will open the playoffs Tuesday, Nov. 5 with a bi-district match against Ranger.
Perrin lost the first set 22-25. The Lady Pirates got out to a quick start with Mackenzie Green staking Perrin to a 4-0 lead.
A single Callie Weddle point and a pair from McKieran Murphy forced Garner into a timeout down 9-3. The squads traded points for most of the game, with kills by Weddle and Kennadee Langham keeping Garner from mounting any offense.
That changed as the Lady ‘Horns used a five-point serving string to take a 20-19 lead. A Langham point gave Perrin its last lead at 22-21 before Garner broke serve and then served out the final three points.
Garner got out to an early 6-2 lead in the second set. Single points by Green and Murphy and a pair from Lucchese Reilly allowed Perrin to tie the game at eight. Garner went ahead 11-8 before a Langham kill and serving pair tied things again at 12.
The Lady ‘Horns broke things open with another five-point run to go ahead 19-13. It proved to be enough as Perrin would get no closer than within four points the rest of the set in falling 20-25.
The visitors looked to make quick work in the third set, using a 10-point string to go up 11-1. Murphy brought the deficit back within 14-7 with a four-point string of her own. Perrin stayed within striking distance from a pair of Langham kills and a Weddle block but couldn’t get the big offensive run as they fell 16-25.
“I was proud of the way we didn’t quit in the third set,” Bland said. “Sometimes we tend to get down on ourselves, but tonight we didn’t quit.”
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