The Lady Hornets swept rival Leggett on the volleyball court in Goodrich, winning by scores of 25-8, 25-3 and 25-12.
Goodrich is looking toward the playoffs after district play, and made quick work of Tuesday’s competition.
The first two sets were all Lady Hornets, but Leggett made a game of the last one. The Lady Pirates kept a few volleys going, even on points lost, and showed improved play in the final set.
“When they make a mistake and they don't get it going their way, they beat themselves up,” Leggett coach Terri Barlow said. “After that, it is lights out. They have improved a whole lot, but they have to continue to learn from their mistakes and keep playing instead of beating themselves up.”
The Lady Pirates were within two at 10-8, but Goodrich was able to make another big run to end it.
Leggett has yet to win a match this season, but have had some close sets.
“It has been uneven. They will play a good rally and play hard, but we end up on the bottom side of it. We had a good set against Goodrich in the first set at Leggett (two weeks prior). We also had a good set against Richards, and Chester too. We're not competitive enough, because we beat ourselves most of the time.”
This is the third season Leggett has been playing volleyball after a long hiatus from the sport. There are many on the roster this year with 11 participating.
After making the postseason last year, Goodrich is building toward another successful run. New coach Ashlan Stafford said the team is gaining momentum heading toward the end of the regular season.
The group is still relatively young, with just two in their final season. They recognized both seniors on the team, Liseidy Balbuena and Tanyreauna Criswell, following action on the court.
“The season is going great and a lot of progress has been made,” Stafford said. “All I'm asking for is progress. We faced Chester and we faced Richards, and they've got some big hitters. We are digging and we are making progress. We got more points than we did last year (versus those opponents).”
Goodrich is currently 2-3 in district play, good for third place. Chester and Richards are first and second. Playing each school three times in a district of four, the Lady Hornets will get two chances at Richards and one more with Chester.
“We go point for point with them,” the coach said of Chester and Richards. “They beat us all three sets, but we do keep up with them.”
Stafford said she wants her team to continue their work on serving.
“Sometimes they are great, but sometimes they throw away a whole game just on serving. Our hitting has improved. My middle, Aaliyah (Wright), when she swings her arm, it is done for. She is very timid and doesn't know she has got that much power yet. My freshman, Tamia (Figgs), and my junior, Bra’Niyah (Wyatt), are putting out some points too. Hitting and serving, that is where we are struggling.
“We played one game, and they had 25 missed serves. That is a whole set, a whole game that is just handed over. We are working on it.”
The coach said there are plenty of positives on the season.
“I love their energy, I love that they are able to continue to joke and be happy, even when things aren't going our way,” Stafford said. “I love their personality, and they are all great teammates to each other. They are good teammates with good effort and good attitudes.”
