Although it wasn’t a successful weekend on the court, Houston High School volleyball coach Barry Wheeler said facing Class 3 and 4 teams Saturday at the Branson Invitational can be beneficial for his team.
The Lady Tigers, who were 2-0 entering the tournament, lost a couple close matches and finished 0-3-1 in four matchups.
“We talked that the weekend can be profitable if we learn from our mistakes, control what we can control and consistently approve,” Wheeler said. “I have no doubt that we will. The kids are too good to not do so.”
HHS (2-3-1) opened pool play Saturday morning with a 12-25, 25-23 tie with Clinton. The Lady Tigers then lost to host Branson 25-9, 25-13 and were edged 26-24, 25-23 by Hollister.
In the first round of the silver bracket, Houston again lost a close decision – this time a 25-23, 25-22 defeat against Seneca.
“It was almost identical to the Hollister match,” Wheeler said. “We had service errors, untimely attack errors, blocking errors and some silly mental mistakes that hurt us.”
Junior Abby Casper led the Lady Tigers with 10 kills in the tournament. Katelyn Martinez and Emily Shea had seven apiece.
Camryn Scheets had a team-best four aces. She and Chloe Hunninghake had 15 assists apiece.
Casper paced Houston with 13 digs.