Lady Horns Fall Short

[KFDM COOP]

Hamshire-Fannett volleyball falls short

KINGWOOD - Lacy Stone's kill booned across the net at the Columbus defense on Saturday, bringing the Hamshire-Fannett volleyball team a final ray of hope.

With the Lady Horns facing elimination down 2-1 in their Class 3A area round playoff match against Columbus, Stone's score knotted both teams at 26 apiece late in Game 4.

As was the case for much of the afternoon, however, Columbus had an answer. The Lady Cardinals capped two consecutive kills from Mandy Moeller and Elise Huskey to grab a 28-26 Game-4 win and end H-F's season with a 3-1 decision in the match.

It was the Lady Longhorns' fourth straight appearance in the area round of the playoffs, and it proved to be a match defined by grit and determination. Columbus prevailed, 25-21, 18-25, 25-19, 28-26.

"My girls showed a lot of heart coming back in several of the games," said Columbus coach Rhonda Magness, whose team trailed H-F by as many as 10 points in Game 4. "Our hats are off to Hamshire-Fannett. They (the Lady Horns) played a great match."

Hamshire-Fannett ends its season at 23-10. The Lady Horns finished second in District 21-3A with an 11-3 record.

Perhaps Saturday's difference maker was the ability of Huskey and Moeller to control the net for much of the match. Huskey finished with 23 kills while Moeller added 18.

"For an entire season, we have been battling with our defense and reading tips by other teams, and tonight Columbus made some tips and our defense was not there," H-F coach Debbie Peltier said. "I tried to make some changes, but we just weren't there to cover the tips. Columbus has a very good ball club, and they never gave up."

Columbus, which improves to 36-4 and will face Needville in the regional quarterfinals, played from behind in all three of its victories. The Lady Horns held a 20-10 lead in Game 4, but Columbus countered with seven straight points and an 18-6 run the rest of the way.

Likewise, the Cardinals spurned a 16-12 deficit in Game 3 to win 25-19, and Columbus trailed 21-18 in Game 1 but finished by scoring the final seven points of the contest.

"Heart has really been our central guiding for us all year," Magness said. "At the beginning of the match, it wasn't really there and then we found it."

The Lady Horns were anchored by Carmon's 11 kills and 11 digs, while senior Cheyenne Craigen added another 10 kills and 27 digs.

Hamshire-Fannett defeated Splendora 3-0 in the bi-district round last Tuesday.

"This was our fourth trip in a row to the playoffs," Peltier said. "It's always exciting, and it's always good volleyball at this level. I'm very proud of the girls, and I'm especially proud of my seniors. They came on this year and produced."

[3ABirdMan]

Congrats on a great seson, Lady Horns!

See ya next year in District, 'cause I know you'll be in the race AGAIN!