Marble Falls, Burnet volleyball add district wins

CAPTION: Junior Leslie Reynoso contributes to the Lady Mustangs at the net. Photo by Christopher Miles/Christopher Miles Photography

The Burnet and Marble Falls high school volleyball teams were both victorious in District 24-4A play Oct. 22.

The Lady Mustangs (20-16, 4-6) beat Lampasas (0-11) 25-10, 25-19, 25-10 to sweep the season series. Marble Falls head coach Christopher Pace noted the win was the icing on the celebratory evening that began with honoring seniors Hope Todd and Mia Trejo.

“We had a great night,” he said. “The match started a little later than we wanted. The junior varsity and freshman matches went to three sets, which is good. I didn’t use a timeout. Whatever the girls wanted to do on the court, we did.”

Meanwhile, the Lady Dawgs (20-15, 8-3) defeated Jarrell (19-17, 4-6) 25-19, 25-12, 25-16 to sweep the season series.

Georgetown Gateway (25-5, 10-2) beat Taylor (6-27, 2-8) 25-7, 25-12, 25-6 in the district’s third match.

Salado (34-6, 10-0), which is ranked No. 5 in the latest Class 4A poll of the Texas Girls Coaches Association, beat Austin St. Michael’s in a non-district match.

Pace noted the Lady Mustangs had options on how to win points. Some came on aces. Others were kills or dinks or directional tips. He noted his players were effective at kills that went cross court or down the line, noting they saw the angles well and executed properly. He was pleased with the way his players mixed up their shot selections to keep Lampasas guessing on who would be called to end the rally.

He was equally happy with the defense. He pointed out the Lady Mustangs were quicker to the ball and committed themselves to not let Lampasas have anything easy.

“We played very clean and very well,” he said. “We were able to play defense on everything they threw at us. In my opinion, it was our best defensive night. We didn’t make a whole bunch of mistakes. We did get kids in who typically don’t play much. We moved a couple of freshmen up to let others rest and recover.”

Freshman Brenna Wilde had been playing on the junior varsity while freshman Calie Phillips was on the ninth-grade squad. Wilde entered the contest in the third set and had “two big kills and blocks,” the coach said.

“Being able to get her reps and seeing her compete on the varsity level is good,” he said. “It creates for depth for us.”

Marble Falls’ win and Jarrell’s defeat means the two have the same district record with two matches left in the regular season.

The Lady Mustangs travel to Taylor, while the Lady Cougars host Georgetown Gateway Friday, Oct. 25. Varsity matches typically start at 4:30 p.m. on Fridays.

If Marble Falls beats the Lady Ducks and Jarrell loses to Gateway, a playoff berth isn’t clinched. That simply means the Lady Cougars must beat Marble Falls in the regular season finale at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 29, at Max Copeland Gym so the two teams have identical 5-7 records.

In that scenario, typically the two teams play for a third time to decide which one advances to the playoffs.

“(My players) felt very happy with themselves, very pleased with the way they played,” Pace said. “You just feel good after a win like that. Our girls know the job isn’t done. Go win the next two, and let’s make some magic. They told me they’re ready and they understand what they need to do. I think they understand what’s at stake, and they’re ready for the moment.”

If the Lady Mustangs defeat Taylor and Jarrell, they would finish fourth in the district standings and advance to the playoffs for the first time since 2009.

CAPTION: Before the match against Lampasas, Mia Trejo and classmate Hope Todd were honored on senior night, Photo by Christopher Miles/Christopher Miles Photography