Siloam Springs stormed back from an 8-0 deficit to win game three 25-20 to avoid a sweep at home against defending 6A champion Russellville on Thursday night.
The Lady Panthers couldn't muster the same kind of magic in game four.
The Lady Cyclones recovered from a slow start of their own in game four and used a 13-0 run to finish off the Lady Panthers 3-1 (25- 14, 25-8, 20-25, 25-11) in a 7A/6A-Central Conference match inside Panther Activity Center.
"We've been struggling finishing matches," said Russellville coach Cindy Jones. "I told them we've got to be tough and finish it."
The Lady Cyclones (10-4, 4-3) improved to 2-1 against 6A competition. Siloam Springs dropped to 3-12 overall and 2-5 through the first half of league play. Siloam Springs was 1-2 against 6A competition. Greenwood finished the first half of the league 3-0 and leads the 6A race, while Alma was 0-3.
Lady Cylones senior Ashton Sitkowski hammered home 19 kills for the match, while senior Madison McKinley had eight kills and senior Shameka Ealy had nine blocks.
Russellville won game one and then throttled the Lady Panthers in game two and it looked like game three might go a similar route early.
The Lady Cyclones raced out to an 8-0 lead before serving the ball out of bounds to break the string.
Madisyn Fullerton helped the Lady Panthers get back in the match with three straight aces and back-to-back blocks from Madison Cooper and Haley Stewart tied the match at 11. Russellville quickly regained the lead 14-11, but Siloam Springs got kills from Shaylon Sharp, Allie Bowman and Hadlee Hollenback to tie the match at 16.
A Cooper kill gave Siloam Springs a 19-18 lead they wouldn't relinquish the rest of game three.
Siloam Springs coach Rose Cheek-Willis said her setters made an adjustment which kept the Lady Cyclones off balance in game three.
"I told them to quit running the quicks and start running more right side, outside," Cheek-Willis said.
Siloam Springs started hot in game four as well, taking a 3-0 lead before Russellville reeled off the next 13 points.
Sharp led Siloam Springs with 11 kills, while Ellie Lampton had seven kills. Cooper had five kills, while Chloe Price had nine assists and Meg Gray 13 assists and 10 digs.
Fullerton led defensively with 22 digs and four aces. Sam Wetzel had seven digs and two aces.
The Lady Panthers play at Van Buren on Tuesday. Siloam Springs swept Van Buren 3-0 earlier this season.
Siloam Springs 3Alma 1
ALMA -- Siloam Springs ended a four-match losing streak and picked up an important 7A/6A-Central Conference win on Tuesday at Charles B. Dyer Arena.
The Lady Panthers rallied from an 0-1 deficit to come back and defeat the Airedalettes 3-1 (20-25, 25-16, 25-16, 27-25) in a league matchup of 6A schools.
The Lady Panthers finished the match in exciting fashion, rallying from a 21-11 deficit in game four to finish off the victory.
Sophomore Shaylon Sharp led the Lady Panthers with 19 kills, while freshman Ellie Lampton had 10 kills, sophomore Hadlee Hollenback and freshman Chloe Price each with five kills, senior Haley Stewart and junior Madison Cooper four, and senior Krysten Hall and Madisyn Fullerton one each.
Price led Siloam Springs in assists with 29, while junior Meg Gray had 17. Cooper led with seven aces, while Sharp and Price each had three and junior Andrea Lowry with two.
Fullerton led with 22 digs, while Lowry and senior Sam Wetzel each had five digs, Price and Sharp each with four, Gray and Hollenback one each. Cooper and Lampton each had two block assists, while Cooper had one solo block.
Sports on 09/27/2015