PRCC’s Madison Butler (PRCC Athletics/Melany Carrasco)
MERIDIAN, Miss. — The Pearl River volleyball team won its first conference match in a road sweep over Meridian Wednesday. The Wildcats relied on solid serving throughout the night in the straight victory (25-11, 25-8, 25-19) for their first-ever matchup over the upstart Eagles.
“I’m so pleased with the discipline and level of play we were able to maintain, especially in the first two sets,” PRCC head coach Haley Chatham said. “We came out fast and stayed that way for two straight sets even though slowing down would have been easier. That’s what winners do.
“We have been prioritizing aggressive serving with minimal errors. They were able to execute and be close to perfect behind the line.”
SET ONE
Pearl River (5-13 overall; 1-1 MACCC) jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead over Meridian (1-14 overall; 0-2) before both teams traded points throughout the early stages of set one. A big Morgan Mears (Hurley; East Central) spike and a Peyton Hoffmayer (Ocean Springs) block gave the Wildcats breathing room as PRCC built a six-point lead, 12-6. Not just a defensive threat at the net, Hoffmayer gave the Wildcats a seven-point lead with a big block that caromed off the outstretched hands of the Eagle defender, 14-7. Setter Skyla Rann (Gonzales, La.; East Ascension) put The River on her back with a five-point service run to extend the PRCC lead to 21-9. Sophie Warren (Brandon) closed the set with back-to-back aces to give the Wildcats a 25-11 set one win.
SET TWO
Pearl River jumped to a big lead early in set two behind eight Madison Butler (Biloxi; D’Iberville) service points. Butler was assisted on the run with strong front-line play by Mears, serving up a spike deep to the Eagles corner and a couple of blocks. Following a Meridian point put the Eagles on the scoreboard, 8-1, an Avery Wheat (Gonzales, La.; East Ascension) spike stopped Meridian from building momentum, 9-1. Following a Mears ace, a Madi King (Leakesville; Greene County) block followed by a King spike put the Wildcats up 14-3. Two service winners by Wheat forced the Eagles to call a timeout as The River built a 17-4 advantage. A block by King gave Pearl River an 18-6 advantage, Wheat followed with a four-point service run, giving the Wildcats a 16-point lead, 22-6. Pearl River won set two, 25-8.
SET THREE
Behind the serving of Wheat, the Wildcats started set three with a six-point service run, 7-0. Wheat helped her own cause on the run, serving up three aces. The Eagles battled back, tying the score 12-12 and forcing Pearl River to use a timeout. Bulter put Pearl River back on top with a three-point service run, 16-12. With the Wildcats hanging on to a four-point lead, Olivia Shirley (Hattiesburg; Oak Grove) extended the lead to five with a well-placed shot behind the Eagle back line. King and Mears followed with two spikes of their own to give the Wildcats a 24-18 lead. An attacking error by the Eagles secured a 25-19 Wildcat win.
“We moved well together in the backcourt. Our blockers made good reads and took away the easy shots,” Chatham said. “Allie (Varner; Madison; Germantown) and Sophie (Warren) were great together in the back row. Our first contacts are much improved, giving us many more offensive options.”
NEXT UP
The Wildcats will travel to Mobile on Friday to face Bishop State. The match will take place at Spring Hill College. The opening serve is scheduled for 3 p.m.
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