Lady Cats fall to Artesia

Apparently well on its way to victory, Artesia seemed to forget Thursday's volleyball match against Clovis High at Rock Staubus Gymnasium was a best-of-five.

After cruising through the first two sets, the Lady Bulldogs found themselves down 20-9 in Game 3. They rallied to make it close, then fought off the Lady Wildcats in the fourth set to complete a 25-13, 25-16, 23-25, 25-22 victory.

Senior middle blocker Hattie Harrison took over in the latter stages of the match and finished with 15 kills and two blocks for Artesia (7-4).

"She did a good job tonight," Lady Bulldogs coach Alan Williams said. "She was putting the ball where they weren't."

Williams said his squad got out of character a bit in the third game, although the Lady Bulldogs made it tight with a set-ending 14-5 surge.

"We had some unforced errors," Williams said. "We've been struggling lately with our ball control."

The Lady Cats (6-8) were without their top player, senior outside hitter Ashlynn Evans, due to a shoulder injury.

"I thought we hustled really hard," CHS coach Cristy Hill said. "I thought we kept our energy up tonight. It was way better than it has been."

Game 4 was close most of the way. The Lady Cats, in fact, held an 18-13 advantage before Artesia finished on a 12-4 run that included four tip kills from the 5-foot-9 Harrison.

"I think that was the better game for (both teams)," Williams said of the fourth set.

Junior outside hitter/defensive specialist Sophie Roberts notched six kills for the Lady Cats, while senior middle hitter Maricella Gutierrez tallied five. Junior outside hitter/setter Brynn Petner had four kills and three aces and senior middle blocker Brooke Renteria posted two blocks and a team-best four aces.

"Our blocks were pretty good tonight," Hill said. "The tips got us a few times."

Clovis had just one service ace through the first two sets, but complied 11 over the final two, including seven in the Game 3 win.

Junior outside hitter/defensive specialist Kailee Padilla added 13 kills and two blocks for Artesia, while junior outside hitter Ashton Craft had five of the team's 17 aces – spread among seven players – to go with three kills.

Senior libero Carmen Harvey added four aces, junior setter Kirklyn Miller had 40 assists and junior outside hitter Brooklynne Ivans collected 15 digs for the Lady Bulldogs.

The Lady Cats traveled to Friona for a dual against the Squaws on Saturday. Their next outing is on Thursday night at Lovington.

St. Mike's dominates CHS – It was a long trip with not much to show for it Tuesday night as the Lady Cats wee thumped 25-9, 25-7, 25-18 by St. Michael's at Santa Fe.

The Lady Horsemen (8-4), ranked third by MaxPreps in Class 3A, made short work of the Lady Cats, who were playing without a couple of starters.

"I thought we passed the ball pretty good and our serve-receive was pretty good," Hill said. "We just weren't putting any balls away."

Renteria had five kills for the Lady Cats, and also recorded their only block of the match. Senior Jecenia Jimenez posted 14 digs, senior libero/defensive specialist Jori Mondragon had 11 and freshman Ellie Morris, up from the JV squad and seeing her first varsity action added six digs.

Senior setter Amanda De La Rosa had 16 assists. Mondragon and Morris each notched an ace.

Ellie had a big night," Hill said. "It was a big responsibility, and I was proud of her."