Rivalry bragging rights and a trip to the Region 23 Semifinal were both on the line Wednesday night, and the Pearl River volleyball team made sure neither left Poplarville. The Wildcats turned in a dominant effort inside a raucous Shivers Gymnasium, sweeping rival Gulf Coast 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-22) to continue its Region 23 Tournament run.
The Wildcats now head to Ellisville Saturday for a 5 p.m. showdown against Northwest. The match will be livestreamed at JCBobcats.com/watch. Tickets are available online at JCBobcats.com/tickets for $11 or cash-only at the gate for $15.
"We've struggled a bit playing teams back-to-back," head coach Haley Chatham said. "Thankfully, we had some composure and were able to pull it out against them. Tonight was good — that was a good win. I believe that this team can beat anyone at any time. We have some serious belief in this group."
Pearl River (27-10 overall) set the tone right from the start, roaring out to a 5-1 lead against the Bulldogs (16-15). The early momentum was sparked by a strong defensive effort as Kinsley Jean Stegall (Saucier; Our Lady Academy) dove for a dig to set up an Avery Wheat (Gonzales, La.; East Ascension) kill.
Although the Wildcats jumped ahead early, Gulf Coast clawed back to even the set and eventually went in front 14-13. The lead was short-lived as Morgan Mears (Hurley; East Central) turned in a big-time denial at the net to even things at 14. PRCC tied it twice more at 18-18 and 19-19 before pulling away late. Reagan Ziegler (Lacombe, La.; Lakeshore) smashed a kill that was mishandled, and a big left-handed swing from Mallory Hesterman (Brooklyn; HomeLife Academy) pushed the lead to 21-19. A couple of Bulldog miscues and a pair of Lila Willett (Chelsea, Ala.) kills sealed the opener, 25-20.
Set two carried a similar rhythm, with the Wildcats once again jumping out to a 5-1 lead — and that's when the Willett takeover began. The freshman fired off three thunderous kills on the way to an 11-7 advantage, each swing landing with authority. PRCC stretched its lead to as much as 13 points at 24-11 behind a series of highlight plays: Wheat tucked a kill into the back corner, Ziegler caught the defense off guard with a tip, Hesterman fired one off a block and out of bounds, and Stegall chased down a ball far outside the court to keep a rally alive. Wheat capped the run with an ace before the Bulldogs fought back to within six. With the Shivers Gymnasium crowd behind her, Willett finished it off 25-18.
Pearl River showed its resilience in what became the final set of the night. Gulf Coast took control early and led 13-8 before the Wildcats mounted their rally. Off the bench came Lindsey Hall (Hattiesburg; Oak Grove), who provided the spark PRCC needed, serving up a pair of aces in a seven-point swing that flipped the score to 15-13.
"Lindsey was the turning point in that set," Chatham said. "She came in right when we needed it and put us back in the set."
Just when it seemed the Wildcats had seized momentum, MGCCC surged back ahead 20-16, forcing a timely Pearl River timeout. The regrouping worked — the Wildcats quickly scored three straight points to get back within one, 20-19, and later evened things at 22-22 when a ball came back over the net and Mears hammered it down. She followed with another kill, and Willett turned an off-balance swing down the line to make it 24-22.
Gulf Coast managed one final point before sending a ball out of play, clinching the set 25-23 — and the sweep for the Wildcats.
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