Girls prepare for district with tough schedule
By Donnie A. Lucas
The Lady Lions have been busy over the past week with last-minute tune-up games against larger schools as the pre-district schedule ends and the start of the District 6-2A race gets underway.
Albany will open district at home on Saturday against Strawn. The JV Red will start the action at 10:00 a.m., followed by the varsity game at 11:00 a.m.
“The girls have been excited to start district,” coach M.J. Reneau said. “We love that our district opener is at home, and we hope our fans and community will be there to show support.”
Albany’s varsity will travel to Newcastle next Tuesday, Sept. 17 for a game starting at 6:00 p.m. following a single junior high game.
The varsity split games last week, beating Bangs in four games, but losing to Dublin in four.
The team picked up a game against 3A Breckenridge on Tuesday, posting a 12-25, 13-25, 25-21, 12-25 loss. Details will be reported next week.
The game ended the pre-district schedule, with Albany taking a 9-10 record into league play.
Last Week’s Games
The Lady Lions hosted Bangs on Sept. 3, picking a 25-11, 21-25, 25-18, 25-22 win.
“Our offense was really strong against Bangs,” Reneau said. “We had 35 total kills led by Sarah Cotter and Alli Hill. The girls were all on the same page, even with a new rotation we had to use at the last minute.”
albany VS. BANGS
PLAYER Serves Kills Digs Blks Asst
T Fuentes 6 1 22 0 0
B Belcher 24 0 10 0 1
A Hill 11 7 6 1 7
A Garcia 0 3 3 0 0
S Cotter 8 8 3 1 0
H Trail 0 2 3 0 2
A Denton 0 7 2 0 0
M Connally 0 7 2 0 0
T Scott 15 0 3 0 7
C Nelson 19 0 13 0 12
The coach added that the team hustled during the game.
“We chased balls to the back wall and made quick reactions to keep the ball in play,” she said. “I’m very proud of the effort and look forward to carrying that into district.”
The varsity came up just short of a win on Friday, hosting Dublin and playing four games 22-25, 25-12, 19-25, 23-25.
“The girls played well, but came up a little short,” the coach said. “Dublin challenged us on the right side, and we made a few adjustments during the game that helped. We are finally all healthy and ready for district.”
albany VS. DUBLIN
PLAYER Serves Kills Digs Blks Asst
T Fuentes 15 1 26 0 1
B Belcher 17 0 14 0 0
A Garcia 0 2 10 0 1
S Cotter 2 8 4 3 0
C Holson 15 2 11 0 18
H Trail 13 0 3 2 0
A Denton 0 10 3 0 0
M Connally 0 2 3 0 1
T Scott 17 2 12 0 0
JV Results
The JV I Red team split games last week, falling to Bangs and beating Dublin.
The JV Red lost to Bangs on Sept. 3, 16-25, 25-13, 14-16.
“This was a hard-fought game for both teams,” coach Jamie Wilson said. “Little mistakes cost us this game – we gave them too many points.”
The Red team defeated Dublin last Friday, 20-25, 25-8, 15-6.
“We got off to a slow start, but ended strong,” the coach said. “We had lots of aces in the last two sets.”
The Red team ended last week with a 10-5 season record.
The JV II White team defeated Bangs, 25-13, 25-18 on Sept. 3.
“The girls did a great job pulling together for a big win,” Wilson said. “They played as a team and got the job done.”
As of last week, the White team stood at 5-5 for the season.
