Volleyball fans easily identify with the big power slams and crafty service aces that are a big part of the sport, but often it’s the unspectacular details that can mean all the difference in a match’s outcome.
The Paris Ladycats lost a close 5-game match Tuesday in the Wildcat Gym to county neighbor Chisum, 23-25, 25-22, 25-21, 22-25, 11-15. Unforced errors proved to be their undoing, as they committed 15 in the first set, 16 in the pivotal fourth, and 11 in the final game.
Chisum, the state’s 24th-ranked Class 3A team, was far from perfect, too. The racked up 20 service errors in the match, but the Mustangs were able to rally to win the key points in the fourth and fifth games to notch their 20th win of the season.
Paris, meanwhile, now sits at 9-15 with home matches left against Kaufman on Friday and Crandall next Tuesday before beginning the District 15-4A race on Sept. 15 at Atlanta.
The Ladycats took advantage of 4 Chisum errors to start Game 1 on a 6-1 run, but the Mustangs settled down to take a 13-9 lead. Paris drew within a single point at 22-23, but a 2-hand lift against the Ladycats ended the game in Chisum’s favor.
With junior middle blocker Lindi Hamner leading the way with 6 kills in Game 2, Paris worked back from an 0-6 start to tie the match. A Hamner stuff worked the count to 22-20 in Paris’ favor, and a Hamner kill set up game point. She then moved to the service line and ended the game on a Chisum kill error.
Three Mustang mistakes and a block by Tezyana Wrice powered Paris to a 6-2 start in Game 3. The Ladycats held a 7-point bulge at 15-8 before Chisum chiseled the lead down to 22-20. A Mustang net serve and miss on a kill shot set up Paris senior Justice Flowers for a game-ending put-down and a 2-1 lead in the match.
Game 4 was tied at 8-all when another Paris 2-hand lift give Chisum the edge at 9-8. The Mustangs led, 17-13, when Paris rallied on a kill by senior Bebe Johnson, a Hamner block, and a pair of Chisum errors tied the game at 17.
Paris had to rally again from 17-20 down with a Hamner kill, 3 straight Chisum miscues, and an ace by Johnson that pushed the Ladycats to the brink of a match win with a 22-20 lead. However, a block by Chisum’s Kaley Standlee and Paris kill error tied the score at 22. A backline kill by libero Lettie Swaim off a Hamner block at the net put Chisum up, 23-22, and 2 more Paris errors ended the set and tied the match at 2 games each.
Paris started the final game on a 3-0 run that was ended when a side judge ruled a Chisum kill shot in-bounds that appeared to bounce outside the line. The event started a 3-point swing to tie at 3-3, and 4 straight Paris errors put the Ladycats in a deep, 4-8 rut.
Still, Paris managed to rally and tie it at 9-9 on a Justice kill, then took a 10-9 lead on an errant Chisum kill shot. Swaim tied the score when her kill shot appeared headed out of bounds but she got an assist from a Paris defender who tried to retrieve the dig.
With 5-0 senior Katie Williams at the line, the Ladycats couldn’t cleanly handle her serves. Four more Paris errors produced 4 match points at 10-14. Flowers saved one point, but a Paris net violation, appropriately, ended the match.
Hamner scored 14 kills in the match, and Flowers added 11. Junior Halen Guess notched 11 kills to lead Chisum.
In sub-varsity action, the Paris freshmen edged Chisum, 2-1, while the Paris JV swept the Mustangs, 2-0.
Photo from previous game.