DECATUR -- Peterson-Owens Fieldhouse came alive Sept. 20 when students, friends and family flooded the facility to see their team, the Life Way Lady Warriors, take on the hometown favorite Decatur Lady Bulldogs in a trio of volleyball matches. One Decatur team emerged victorious, while the other two fell to the Lady Warriors.
In the first contest of the night, the young Decatur junior high B team was able to hold on to take the match 25-15 and 20-15.
The Decatur junior high A team had a much tougher go at its match when the Lady Warriors hit a run of three straight points to win set one, 25-22. The tables turned in the second set when Decatur jumped out in front and held on to take the win, 25-16, and force the match into a tiebreaker.
Life Way gained the advantage early in the tiebreaker and went on to take the win, 15-8, and the junior high A match two sets to one over Decatur.
In the varsity contest, Life Way jumped out in front early, but Decatur fought back and tied the set at 14 all. For a short time, the set went either way until the Lady Warriors picked up a series of points to claim the first set, 25-19. But things turned around in the second set for the Lady Bulldogs.
In the second set, it looked like Life Way was going to run away with the set until a series of serves by Giselle Funetes, Brooklyn Todd and Annabelle Bell took the Lady Warriors by surprise, enabling Decatur to jump out in front and hold on to take the second set win, 25-21.
The Decatur Lady Bulldogs made the Lady Warriors earn every point in the final two sets, but in the end, the match went to Life Way, three sets to one.
Westside Eagle Observer/MIKE ECKELS
Lady Bulldog Anette Hernandez sets the ball to another front row player during the Decatur-Life Way varsity volleyball match in Decatur Sept. 20. The Warriors took the match three sets to one over the Lady Bulldogs.
Westside Eagle Observer/MIKE ECKELS
Giselle Fuentes spikes the ball back into Lady Warrior territory for a Lady Bulldog point during the third set of the Decatur-Life Way conference contest at Peterson-Owens Fieldhouse in Decatur Sept.20.