Siloam Springs dug itself a hole in game one against Rogers High but managed to rally for a 26-24 victory.
The Lady Mounties made sure that didn't happen again the rest of the night.
Rogers got 11 kills from senior Shannon Orlopp and 10 kills from Samantha Lassiter and won the final three games in a 3-1 (24-26, 25-16, 25-13, 25-21) victory Thursday at Panther Activity Center.
"The chemistry just hasn't quite made it yet," said Siloam Springs coach Rose Cheek-Willis. "It's not quite there. I can see that it's going to come, and I can see that when it does we're going to be tough."
Rogers led 13-6 and appeared to be cruising in game one before the Lady Panthers stormed back for the win.
The Lady Mounties (3-0) got out to good starts in games two and three as well, but this time they were able to hold off the Lady Panthers (0-2).
"We regrouped," said Rogers coach Jeana Breedlove. "We had really good games two and three."
Rogers went on an 11-2 run in game two to go up 15-5 -- a streak that included several Lady Panthers hitting and service errors and two kills from Orlopp.
Siloam Springs got back within 15-10 but Rogers answered with three straight points, including another kill from Orlopp and one kill from Madison Sherrill.
In game three, the Lady Mounties went on a 12-1 run to turn a 7-5 lead into a 19-6 advantage before finishing off the 25-13 win.
Siloam Springs matched Rogers point for point to start game four and Baily Cameron's kill tied the game at 13. The Lady Panthers then gave Rogers three straight points with a bad serve, hit out of bounds and a four-hits penalty.
Rogers' Kimi Davis served two straight aces to make it 20-15 and the Lady Mounties were able to finish off the win.
"I have to really give Siloam Springs credit for fighting and trying to upset that fourth win and take it a fifth match," Breedlove said. "They're a good program."
Davis had 21 digs for Rogers, while Hannah Lloyd had 21 assists.
Baily Cameron led Siloam Springs with 12 kills, while Laura Salley had 10 kills. Arika Johnson led with 18 assists, and Sidney Avery had 13 assists. Taylor Gay had 35 digs for the Lady Panthers, while Sierra Ferguson had 21 digs and Madisyn Fullerton had 12 digs.
Rogers starts 7A-West Conference play against Springdale on Thursday. Siloam Springs hosts Fort Smith Northside on Tuesday.
Bentonville 3
Siloam Springs 0
BENTONVILLE -- The offensive production Sadie Pate and Anna LeDuc had during Tuesday's volleyball season opener is to be expected during any Bentonville match this fall.
The contributions Lauren Bareis made might have caught a few people by surprise, but not Lady Tigers coach Michelle Smith.
The senior was particularly effective with her serves and recorded seven aces during Bentonville's 3-0 victory over Siloam Springs in nonconference action at Tiger Arena.
"Lauren was definitely on her game," Smith said following the 25-19, 25-12, 25-14 decision. "We've known it's always been there, but it's been up and down, hot or cold. She was being that consistent player that we need her to be, and it definitely showed."
When Bareis wasn't delivering shots that weren't returned, Pate and LeDuc were doing their part in the 25-19, 25-12, 25-14 decision. Both of them finished the match with 13 kills, and LeDuc also added a trio of blocks to lead the Lady Tigers (1-0) in that category.
Pate, a junior, set the tone early when she recorded four kills in Bentonville's first five points. As the match progressed, LeDuc took things over and capped the match with a thunderous kill that Siloam Springs didn't have a chance to return.
"I just think our girls did a great job of being aggressive at the service line and pulled Siloam out of its offense," Smith said. "I don't think we got a true taste of what Siloam can do.
"Sadie's energy was amazing, and it helped bring up the whole team. Every girl seemed to feed off that from the beginning, and it carried on into game two and game three. The girls were having fun, and we saw a lot of smiles out there."
Siloam Springs held its own for much of the first set and was within 22-18 after it scored three straight points before Bentonville pulled away. The second and third sets were different because the Lady Panthers made a number of self-inflicted mistakes, allowing Bentonville to put together scoring runs.
Four errors played a part in a 7-0 run that allowed Bentonville to pull away in the second set, turning a two-point lead into an 18-9 cushion. The Lady Tigers then went on a 10-1 run in the third set and turned a 6-5 lead into a 16-6 cushion on a Pate's tip over the net for a kill.
"That's what I kept telling them; you're shooting yourselves in the foot," Siloam Springs coach Rose Cheek-Willis said. "We had hitting error after hitting error.
"We didn't pass very well, and we're a good passing team. I was shocked that we didn't pass any better than we did. You have to give Bentonville credit because they served well, but we're a much better passing team than that -- much better. But we certainly go back and have a passing day in practice."
-- NWA Media sports writer Henry Apple contributed to this report.
Sports on 08/31/2014