Playing 30 matches confirmed what Julia Sloan believed about her 2025 Houston volleyball team: consistency is key.
The Lady Tigers concluded an up-and-down regular season last week with a pair of close conference losses to Cabool and Ava. HHS couldn’t finish its lead in a 20-25, 25-16, 20-25, 25-12, 15-3 defeat last Tuesday at Cabool and lost its Senior Night matchup with Ava 25-20, 25-19, 17-25, 25-21 last Thursday.
“It is that time of year where we get into the nitty gritty part of our season and have to show up night in and night out.”
HHS volleyball coach Julia Sloan
Houston (18-9-3) was red-hot down the stretch with 10 wins and three ties in 15 matches. The momentum continued against a strong Cabool team that was undefeated at home. But after going ahead 2-1, the Lady Tigers only scored 15 of the next 40 points.
Against Ava, the team struggled from the start and fell behind 0-2. A strong third set got HHS within striking distance before ultimately losing to the last-place team in the district.
Kayla Wagner, one of six seniors who sant the National Anthem beforehand and were recognized alongside their parents after the match, led Houston with 12 kills. Gracyn McNiell had 14 digs. Hally Scheets contributed three blocks. Wagner and Claire Benoist had two aces apiece.
Stats against Cabool were unavailable.
TEAM GETS REMATCH WITH MOUNTAIN GROVE
Now onto district play. The Lady Tigers are the No. 4 seed in the seven-team Class 3 District 11 Tournament that begins Tuesday at Mountain Grove High School. The Lady Tigers will face No. 5 Mountain Grove at 4:30 p.m.
Houston lost its Sept. 25 matchup 3-0 at Mountain Grove before its long run of successful matches.
“We are really going to need to step up our consistency in districts,” Sloan said. “I think we are ready for our Mountain Grove rematch.”
CLASS 3 DISTRICT 11 TOURNAMENT
(at Mountain Grove High School)
First round • Tuesday
(4) Houston vs. (5) Mountain Grove, 4:30 p.m.
(2) Liberty vs. (7) Ava, 6 p.m.
(3) Willow Springs vs. (6) Forsyth, 7:30 p.m.
Semifinals • Thursday
(1) Hollister vs. Houston-Mountain Grove winner, 5 p.m.
Liberty-Ava winner vs. Willow Springs-Forsyth winner, 6:30 p.m.
Championship • Saturday
Semifinal winners, 1 p.m.