Lady Lions earn No. 2 seed

Gravette junior Nicole Springer hits one just over the net against Farmington's Lexie Lewis in tournament play on Oct. 18. Gravette senior Shyanne Nichols awaits a possible return.
Gravette junior Nicole Springer hits one just over the net against Farmington's Lexie Lewis in tournament play on Oct. 18. Gravette senior Shyanne Nichols awaits a possible return.

— If ever there was a match that gave spectators their money's worth, it was the district tournament face off between host Gravette and Farmington on Oct. 18. Gravette was up 2 sets to 0, but Farmington won the next two with the match being decided in the tiebreaking fifth set 15-13 and the Lady Lions taking a spot in the championship game on Thursday against Shiloh Christian.

The first set was close throughout, with tie scores at 14 and again at 20 before the Lady Lions picked up five successive points against the Lady Cardinals to take the first set 25-0.

In set two, the Lady Cards struggled while Gravette gained momentum, making kills and dropping the ball in between Farmington players. Gravette took the set 25-20 as well.

Gravette senior Shyanne Nichols pounded the ball home numerous times, whether playing at the net or in the back court. Again and again, the ball was set by senior Shelby Frey and juniors Rebekah Morris, Jessica Bayley and Nicole Springer. Sisters Amanda and Monica White, along with Kayla Harrelson, played strong at the net. Whitney DeWitt, playing at Libero, kept many of the Farmington kill attempts from their mark with repeated digs.

But when it appeared Cards were going to fall before the Lady Lions, who were hungry for a chance at the district championship, they came back and fought hard to stay alive in the match. Fans remained on edge throughout the set with the two teams tied multiple times - at 13, 14,15, 16, 17, 19 and 20. But this time, the Lady Cards picked up a three-point lead. Though the Gravette girls managed to add another two points to the score, Farmington took the set 25-22.

In the fourth, the tables seemed to have turned. The Farmington girls dominated and Gravette struggled but could not even get close, dropping the set to Farmington 25-16.

The tie-breaking round was a nail biter to the end, with the score within a point or two throughout and both teams being up at times. Gravette junior Monica White played strong at the net, picking up a number of kills, and Destany Wishon tipped the ball over in Gravette’s favor. In the end, the Lady Lions roared to the finish and grabbed a two-point lead just when they needed it to take the set 15-13 and win the match 3-2.

Sports, Pages 9 on 10/26/2011