Lady Blues show improvement despite loss to Glen Rose
By TC Gordon,
2 days ago(TC GORDON | THE GRAHAM LEADER) The Graham Lady Blues on the court celebrate a big block for a point Tuesday, Oct. 15 during their hard-fought 3-1 loss to Glen Rose.
(TC GORDON | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Senior Annemarie McHenry swings on a ball and tries to get it over a couple of Glen Rose defenders during Graham’s 3-1 loss Tuesday, Oct. 15 to the Lady Tigers.
(TC GORDON | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Graham’s Emi Gordy (6) pushes a ball from the middle to the sideline for a point Tuesday, Oct. 15 during the team’s 3-1 loss to Glen Rose.
(TC GORDON | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Graham senior Lillian Noble (11) reaches high above the net to hit a ball as she looks for a kill Tuesday, Oct. 15 during the Lady Blues’ 3-1 loss to Glen Rose.
(TC GORDON | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Lady Blues senior Braylee Mayes swings on a ball from the sideline during Graham’s 3-1 loss to Glen Rose this past Tuesday, Oct. 15.
(TC GORDON | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Senior Camden Thorne jumps into the air to set a ball for one of her teammates Tuesday, Oct. 15 during the team’s 3-1 loss to Glen Rose.
Although Tuesday night’s final result was the same as when Graham and Glen Rose first played a couple weeks ago, the game felt drastically different this time around.
The visiting Lady Tigers handed the Lady Blues a 3-1 loss by set scores of 16-25, 16-25, 25-22 and 25-27, but Graham’s girls played a competitive game, especially in the third and fourth sets, to put a scare into state-ranked Glen Rose.
Graham (21-13, 2-4) looked to be headed in the wrong direction and on the wrong side of a sweep while Glen Rose (26-7, 5-1) played like a team that has been ranked as high as No. 5 in the Texas Girls Coaches Association State Volleyball Poll and currently sits at No. 19.
The Lady Blues struggled on both sides of the ball in the first two sets as they lost both by the same score. Glen Rose’s hitters were strong and accurate as they used the whole court to find openings in Graham’s defense.
High points for the Lady Blues, however, included early offense from multiple players, including Emi Gordy who had a couple kills in the first set, as well as a few from Madison Cauble.
While the first set was a struggle all around, the second set saw some fight from the Lady Blues. They played the visitors extremely close through the first half of the set. But after Lillian Noble drilled a kill from the back line to make it 13-12 in Glen Rose’s favor, the Lady Tigers strung together seven straight points to pull ahead 20-12.
Gordy ended the run with a block, then added a kill followed by a block from Noble. But the Lady Blues didn’t get much more as Glen Rose took a 2-0 advantage in the match.
“I talked to (my players), I was like, we can't get down 0-2 before we decide to play like we're capable of playing,” head coach Marci Faulk said.
Graham seemed to get things figured out in the third set, and it wasn’t long before those changes were visible on the court. The Lady Blues opened on a 4-1 run with an ace from Braylee Mayes, a Noble block and a Gordy kill.
Glen Rose was forced to take an early timeout after the Lady Blues put together a 5-point run a few minutes later and led 10-4. Graham’s confidence increased, especially on the defensive end, which led to Glen Rose errors and more offensive opportunities for the Lady Blues.
“The difference was our presence at the net. Our blocks were huge in that third set, and it got in their hitters’ heads,” Faulk said. “...I thought our blocking in the third set really changed the momentum to our side. (The Lady Tigers) were hitting to avoid the block versus hitting to kill like they were in the first two sets.”
Graham recorded five blocks in the third set, led by Noble who had three in a stretch of five points for the team. Although Glen Rose fought back to tie the set at 22-22, Cauble swung for a kill, the Lady Tigers hit a ball into the net and Noble finished things off with a kill from the middle to the sideline.
All the momentum seemed to be going for the Lady Blues, but they were still down 2-1 and needed to win two straight sets to pull off the comeback.
Graham took an 11-5 lead in the fourth set following one of the longest rallies of the night that ended in a Glen Rose net violation.
But the Lady Tigers wouldn’t go away, and the two teams battled back and forth all set. Eventually, Glen Rose was one point away from winning at 24-20, but Graham scored four straight points to tie it up and force extra plays.
However, Graham’s girls came up just short as Glen Rose ended the game with a kill and a service ace to end the Lady Blues’ hopes of coming back.
Despite the outcome, Faulk was pleased with the way her team never gave up and played confidently against the odds.
“I just told them, sets three and four, we seemed so much more relaxed and confident, like we were having fun doing this,” the head coach said. “It wasn't a chore or job, it wasn't hard. They just looked like they were having fun.”
The Lady Blues will look to build off the positives of this game as they go about the remainder of their district schedule.
Following a road game Friday, Oct. 18 against Stephenville, Graham will hit the road again for a rematch against Brock at their court next Tuesday, Oct. 22.
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