Marble Falls volleyball beats Jarrell, focuses on playoffs
CAPTION: Senior libero Kenadi Dalton (4) congratulates sophomore hitter Brighton Bernard (13), who is being hugged by junior middle blocker Amaris Mitchell-Ochoa and Katie Terrell as junior setter Hannah Welch (3) and senior athlete Kate McCary (left) join in. Staff photo by Jennifer Fierro
The Marble Falls High School volleyball team took care Jarrell with a three-set sweep Oct. 24 to finish District 24-4A play.
Now the Lady Mustangs (15-13, 6-6) turn their attention to a bi-district match against Gatesville (29-9, 7-3 District 23-4A runner-up) set for 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 30, at Lampasas High School. Buy tickets here.
“It’s going to be a challenge,” Marble Falls head coach Zoey Beard-Hanrahan said. “It’s going to be a fight. We’ll be ready to face it and excited to face it.”
The Lady Hornets are in a district won by Lorena (32-10, 10-0) with China Spring (22-17, 6-4) and Waco Robinson (24-17, 5-5). Lorena is ranked No. 16 in the latest Class 4A poll of the Texas Girls Coaches Association.
Beard-Hanrahan added that reaching the playoffs and advancing was part of her vision for the program when she accepted the job in May.
“We have goals for this program that we haven’t accomplished,” she said. “We’re going to have a tough week of practice. We’re at the end of district and everyone is tired. We have three days. But it’s going to make them better and prepare them for a tough match because Gatesville is going to be tough.”
Meanwhile, District 24-4A isn’t too shabby either. District champion Salado (30-13, 12-0) is ranked No. 10, while runner-up Georgetown Gateway (25-7, 10-2) is No. 21. Burnet (25-9, 8-4) lost only to those opponents and swept everyone else in the district.
Marble Falls’ district schedule began with Burnet, Gateway and Salado and finished with Lampasas, Taylor and Jarrell.
After going 0-3 to start each round, the Lady Mustangs had to fight their way back into a playoff spot by sweeping the other three opponents at the end of each round.
“After that losing streak with the top three teams, I was really proud they were able to come out of that,” the coach said. “And then beat Lampasas the way they did and stay strong against Taylor and Jarrell – I was glad they were able to just stay mentally strong and finish it tough. Those three matches can be a bit of a downer if you let it be a downer, but they didn’t. They stayed on top of it. We started playing the way we needed to play. I don’t know if the schedule was particularly good or bad. It just kind of was what it was.”
Beard-Hanrahan noted the Lady Mustangs had a slower start against Jarrell to finish the regular season. But once Marble Falls earned the first set, the Lady Mustangs made quick work of the Lady Cougars.
“It was a closer match and then we really took it to them those last two sets,” she said. “I’m very proud of how we performed and our fight. I’m blessed to have this group of girls. They’ve been in high competition. There’s not much they have to change. They’re used to playing together. They hold those expectations to each other as well.”
She noted that fight the Lady Mustangs displayed at the end of each district round — where they had to win out if they wanted to get into the postseason — will be vital in a single-elimination state tournament.
“It’s going to be so important,” she said. “We’re not done. We still have goals for this program we have not accomplished yet even though they have accomplished so much. But going there and winning the first round are two different things. They’re going to fight as hard as they can.”
