8th grade girls come back to win ACS sets
By Sam Waller
The Albany Junior High Lady Cubs split their final home matches of the season Monday, Sept. 26 against Abilene Christian with the eighth grade winning 25-19, 25-21, while the seventh grade lost in three sets 14-25, 25-19, 9-15.
The Lady Cubs play their last four matches on the road, starting Monday, Oct. 3 at Hawley.
Seventh Grade
The seventh grade Lady Cubs (2-6) came back to extend the match, but they were unable to maintain the momentum in the third set after taking an early lead.
Charli Trail had 11 service points with two aces to lead Albany, while Carsyn Clegg had eight service points with an ace. Karlyn Thompson had one service point on an ace.
Finlee Brown recorded three kills with Trail making two.
Abilene Christian took control quickly in the first set, using a 10-1 run to take a 12-4 lead. Albany battled back in the second, which was tied eight times before Clegg served the final three points. In the third set, Abilene Christian ended the match with a 9-0 run.
“Consistency is something I’ve been trying to preach to these girls all year long,” coach Tate Thompson said. “We made a lot of mistakes in the first set, then fixed them in the second set. In the third set, we just made a few more mistakes than Abilene Christian did, and that was the difference.”
The match started the second round of the district schedule.
“As we finish the first half of district, I’m really proud of these girls in the massive improvement that they’ve shown,” Thompson said.
Eighth Grade
The eighth grade Lady Cubs (4-5) won their second match in a row, withstanding Abilene Christian’s comeback attempts in both sets to complete the sweep.
“The girls have become a lot more confident, which was the main issue at the beginning of the season,” coach Elizabeth Martin said. “Now that they know what they’re doing, they’re ready to go for the second half.”
Ashlyn Miller led Albany with nine service points including an ace, while Zayne Lefevre had eight service points. Hattie Braly and Charlee Hefner each had five service points, while Brooke Richards and Tatum Grady had one apiece.
Grady had two kills and Braly had one.
In the first set, the Lady Cubs used a 5-0 run to take a 17-12 lead, then held on as Abilene Christian got within a point. In the second set, Albany led 16-7 before Abilene Christian came back to take a 19-18 lead. The Lady Cubs won the next point and finished the match with a 6-2 run.
“We’ve gotten a lot better at finishing games,” Martin said. “The girls know they don’t have to give up. They know they can keep pushing and get the lead back.”
