EARLY – Experienced paid dividends in the first volleyball match of the season, as the Class 2A Bangs Lady Dragons went on the road and upended the Class 3A Early Lady Horns, 25-13, 20-25, 25-17, 25-23 to kick off the 2023 campaign.
With seven members of last year’s bi-district finalist squad returning, the Lady Dragons were able to shake off some bouts of inconsistency against a Lady Horns team that sprinkled a mix of returnees and varsity newcomers on the court Tuesday night.
“We were prepared to play, we had a solid rotation, knew where to go, and what to expect,” said Bangs interim head coach Tamara Minshew, who took over the program in mid-July after former head coach Cheyanne Lovelady accepted the head coach position in Brownwood. “We play Early every year so we know their kids and we talked about what we needed to do in defensive situations based off their attack.”
Bangs assistant coach Leslea Miller added, “The girls came out with a lot of heart. This is one of the teams they always want to beat and they came out determined today. They’re still getting used to having us, we’re still learning from them and they’re still learning from us.”
Despite the setback, Early third-year head coach Missy Vaughn saw plenty of positives to serve as a foundation for the season.
“They fought and there were some great things that happened, but we’re so young,” Vaughn said. “We had sophomores and freshmen stepping up in this game today and I thought they did a fantastic job. We played the net really well and had some great kills, but we worked a different rotation today trying to get some of the younger ones more experience.”
Jadyn Miller paced Bangs with 11 kills followed by Neeley Bradley and Kasey Solis with six apiece, Ava Boren with three, Claire Auldridge with two and Emily Baker with one.
Bradley dished out 16 assists while Boren chipped in three.
Boren also served a team-best five aces trailed by two each from Bradley, Julianna Ethridge and Cloey Petty, and one from Miller.
For Early, Jensyn Rasor led the offensive charge with eight kills trailed by Matty Boswell with five, Dakota Barksdale with four, Gabby Benson and Karley Smith with two apiece and Grey Pruett and Jenna Hataway with one each.
Pruett was credited with 19 assists and 13 digs.
Serving aces were Boswell and Benson with two each, while Pruett and Rasor each contributed one.
Rasor also posted a team-best three blocks for the Lady Horns.
In the initial set, Bangs broke a 5-all tie with seven consecutive points behind the serving of Boren, as she logged two aces and Bradley contributed a kill during the run.
Leading 15-7 at one point, Bangs witnessed Early close the gap to 17-13, but the Lady Dragons reeled off the final eight points of the set.
The second set saw Early jump out to a 13-9 edge aided by kills from Boswell and Barksdale. Bangs eventually rallied and drew even at 20 on a kill from Bradley, but the Lady Dragons were then whistled for a net violation. Early followed with four more points, including an ace from Pruett, to pull even at one set apiece.
Bangs raced out to a quick 9-3 advantage in the third set and kept Early at arm’s length the rest of the way. An ace from Boren and kills by Auldridge and Bradley in succession boosted the lead to 17-7 for the Lady Dragons. Early was able to creep back within 22-17 before Bangs fired off the final three points.
The finale went back and forth with Early grabbing its final lead, 21-20, on a kill by Boswell. Bangs tallied the next two points, then Early added another to create a tie at 22. The Lady Horns were then whistled for a net violation that gave Bangs a 23-22 lead, and Ethridge followed with a serve Early couldn’t get back over the net that pushed the Lady Dragons to the brink of victory, 24-22. The Lady Horns added another point on a Bangs hitting error, but Miller came through with the closing kill for the two-point triumph for the Lady Dragons.
Both Bangs (1-0) and Early (0-1) will be back in action Friday and Saturday at the Veribest tournament, and the goals for both teams are similar.
“More communication to the point that they’re directing the team more than we are,” Minshew said of Bangs’ weekend objectives. “We want to see the team start leading. They’re smart volleyball players and they know what to do and how to make adjustments.”
Vaughn added, “I want to see a lot more communication and teamwork and the girls feeding off of each other.”
