Siloam Springs' volleyball team wasn't able to defeat one of Oklahoma's largest schools Monday night in a nonconference volleyball match, but the Lady Panthers gave the kind of effort head coach Joellen Wright wants to see as they head down the final stretch of the 2017 season.
Broken Arrow (Okla.) middle blocker Makina Wratten and outside hitter Macy Blackburn combined for 26 kills and the Lady Tigers earned a hard-fought 3-1 (25-21, 20-25, 25-22, 25-23) victory against the Lady Panthers at the Panther Activity Center.
"Any one of those sets could have gone either way," Broken Arrow coach Ian Bullen said. "We played Siloam Springs a couple of summers ago in a summer league. That's kind of one of the reasons I wanted to get ahold of your coach and set up a match. I knew that coming over here was going to be a cool trip for our kiddos because it's not very far from Broken Arrow. To tell you the truth it's a lot more enjoyable than a trip to Oklahoma City."
It was a three-match night, and Broken Arrow won all three matches, including the sophomore and junior varsity games.
"We were excited to come over and play you guys and really not just at the varsity level, but all three levels," Bullen said. "It was a lot of fun. It was a good challenge for the kiddos.
"The varsity presented some challenges to us that we were having a little bit of trouble figuring out. Outside hitters were really, really good on that team, and they served the ball well against us. That's what kept them in the game. We had a couple of runs there that we were fortunate enough to come away with enough points to win those tight sets."
Siloam Springs senior outside hitter Shaylon Sharp ripped a season-high 19 kills to go with nine digs, four aces and a block assist. Junior hitter Ellie Lampton had 15 kills, seven digs and a block assist.
"It was a fun night," Wright said. "I was proud of their focus. I think they truly, really were focused tonight. We started connecting more with Shaylon, and that's good because she needed it."
A Lampton kill and ace in consecutive plays gave Siloam Springs a 19-16 lead in the first set, but Broken Arrow (17-12) reeled off a 9-2 run to take a 1-0 lead with a 25-21 victory.
The Lady Panthers (9-12) bounced back in the second set behind seven kills from Sharp and three more from Lampton, including the final kill to close out a 25-20 victory.
The Lady Panthers led 12-7 in the third set after an ace by junior Chloe Price, but Broken Arrow rallied to tie 14-14, and two kills from Wratten helped the Lady Tigers pull ahead 23-20. Kills from Blackburn and Gracie Daniels helped Broken Arrow squeak out a 25-22 victory in the third set.
Three kills from Wratten and two aces and a kill from Gywn Cowan helped the Lady Tigers pull ahead 17-12 in the third set.
But Sharp hammered three kills and two aces and Lampton added a kill and Price an ace as the Lady Panthers rallied to tie the match at 20.
Three straight Lady Panthers errors put Broken Arrow in front 23-20, but the Lady Panthers rallied again to tie the set at 23. A combo block from Allie Bowman and Katie Kendrick followed by a kill from Sharp had the score knotted at 23-23 and the Lady Panthers hoping to force a fifth and deciding game.
It wasn't meant to be. Siloam Springs served the next ball into the net and Wratten threw down a final hammer on the Lady Panthers for a 25-23 victory.
Wratten, a 6-foot commitment to Missouri State with a 26 1/2-inch vertical leap, finished with 16 kills and a .619 hitting percentage according to Broken Arrow stats. She gave the Lady Panthers fits all night in the middle.
"Momentum killer from her," Wright said. "She was pretty good."
Bowman and Price each had four kills, with Price totaling 44 assists, nine digs, two aces and one solo block.
Madison Hall had nine digs, while Kirsten Loftis had eight digs.
Kenlie Noel and Kendrick each had one block assist, while Kailee Thomason served two aces.
Despite the loss, the Lady Panthers came away encouraged with how they played Monday night.
"In the huddle they felt like they know they can do it," Wright said. "That was a huddle where they left it was like, 'Oh, if we play like that all the time, we can win state.' That was what was coming out of their mouths when they were in the huddle. We played together and with some fight and some heart."
The Lady Panthers returned to action on Tuesday night against Alma in celebration of Teacher Appreciation Night. Results were not available at presstime.
Siloam Springs plays Thursday on the road at Russellville.
Sports on 10/04/2017