Boswell outlasts Ladycats to take sole possession of first place in 6-5A

After Aledo senior Sarah Haeussler executed a block on Boswell hitter Hannah Boyd for a point that extended the lead to 22-20, it appeared the Ladycats were on their way to winning game four and tying the best-of-five District 6-5A match at two games each.

Haeussler had been a beast on the net all night, sending down a team-high 15 kills while adding three blocks.

Boswell clamped down and earn the next two points, and each team split the next four points to bring the fourth game to a 24-24 standstill.

Boswell, leading 2-1 in games, took a 25-24 lead when Boyd sent down her match-high 20^th kill of the contest. On the next rally, Boswell senior Brigan Barber fired an ace to give the Lady Pioneers a 26-24 win that sealed the match Friday night at Boswell High School.

The 20-25, 25-20, 22-25, 24-26 loss drops the No. 12 Ladycats to 4-1 in district play, while Boswell moves to 5-0. The two teams will meet for a second time in district play on Oct. 17 at Aledo.

In a battle of state-ranked teams, No. 13 Boswell took the opening game, 25-20. The game was tied 10 times before settling at 15-15. But the hosts followed with a 10-5 run to take the game.

The Ladycats never trailed in game two. Boswell had cut the Aledo lead to 9-8, but never got closer. A pair of blocks and a kill by junior hitter Hannah Jones accounted for three of the last five Ladycats’ points as AHS took a five-point win to square the match.

Jones also had a monster game at the net, finishing with seven kills and a match-high eight blocks.

The Ladycats jumped out to a 6-0 lead in game three, but the hosts did not blink. Boswell came back with an 18-6 run to take an 18-12 lead. Another block by Jones and a pair of kills from Haeussler along with consecutive Boswell return errors cut the Lady Pioneers’ lead to 22-20.

However, Boswell went on a 5-0 run to take game three and hold a 2-1 lead in games.

After the first 25 rallies, the Ladycats led 15-10 in game four. Haeussler sent down four kills in the run, Maggie Wackerhagen fired an ace, and Anna Rogers, Evelyn Torres and Alex Grooms each recorded a kill.

But once again, Bowell did not flinch. The Lady Pioneers followed with an 11-7 run to cut the Ladycats’ lead to 22-21 to set up the frantic, final rallies.

Wackerhagen led Aledo with 19 assists, with Sarah Morehead adding 16. Libero Allegra Rivas recorded 27 digs, and Sydney Casey finished with eight kills and seven digs.

In sub varsity action, the Ladycats junior varsity fell, 20-25, 25-19, 22-25, while the freshman team swept Boswell, 25-21, 25-23.

The Ladycats will continue district play on Tuesday at Eaton.