The Houston varsity volleyball team rebounded from a difficult weekend by avenging a season opening-loss.
After losing three of their five matches at the Branson Tournament, the Lady Tigers bounced right back Monday night by downing rival Licking 25-11, 25-22 on the road.
Sophomore libero Chelsey Williams led Houston’s scrambling defense with 14 digs, and Janell Gentry and Shelbi Moore combined for 23 more. Houston had just 14 total digs in its 27-25, 25-23 loss to Licking in its season opener.
“The digging stats tell the story,” Lady Tigers coach Debbie James said.
Gentry led Houston (4-4-1) with 24 assists, and Erica Keeney had four blocks. Courney Sillyman led the Lady Tigers with four kills.
“Courtney isn’t tall, and we have been working with her to place her shot,” James said.
At Branson, the Lady Tigers’ lone victory was a 25-13, 25-20 win against Willow Springs. Houston also split with Nixa 14-25, 25-22.
The Lady Tigers lost to Cole Camp (15-25, 13-25), Lockwood (11-25 17-25) and Eldorado Springs (19-25, 18-25) in straight sets.
“I think a lot of our kids were surprised at the difference in the level of play at the 8th grade and JV levels versus this tournament,” James said. “I just didn’t see them really fight for a win like I know they can.”
Senior Kate Harper led Houston with 16 total kills and nine blocks. Gentry had team-highs of 60 assists and 26 digs. Kortney Huffman had six aces.
“They looked like a totally different team Monday night than this weekend,” James said. “I think they have decided to start playing some ball.”
