On the last week of the season, the varsity volleyball team dueled with arch-rivals Round Rock twice in a four-day span. Coming into the first match, the team’s Senior Night game at home on Tuesday, Nov. 10, the white-hot Lady Warriors had won their last three games, looking to build on that hot streak. In their last home game of the season, the Warriors were able to obtain a victory over their rivals in four sets, maintaining their good form.

The Lady Warriors were able to nab the first set 25-21, but a series of miscues caused the home side to drop the second set 15-25. However, the team was able to right the ship and fight through the errors in the next set. In the third set, Round Rock led 6-2 before the Lady Warriors went on a 12-4 run to put themselves ahead 14-10. The Dragons countered with four straight points of their own, but the home side was able to pull away and steal the third set 25-19.

The fourth and final set of the match was back and forth, with neither team willing to give each other any breathing room as the sides dueled. The Lady Warriors were able to take the lead after being down 19-16, and Lola Fernandez ‘23 capped off the rally with an ace, winning the set 25-23 and ending the match.

Abby Gregorczyk ‘21 led the Lady Warriors with 12 kills, while Peyton Ferree ‘22 added nine kills of her own. 

The two teams faced off once more on Friday, Nov. 13, this time at Round Rock. In a hostile environment, the Lady Warriors were able to quiet the home crowd and defeat the Dragons in five sets. The first two sets of the match were neck-and-neck, with the Warriors taking the first set 25-22 and the Dragons answering with a 23-25 second set victory. Round Rock claimed the third set 20-25, and now the Lady Warriors’ backs were against the wall, as they needed to win the last two sets to prevail. The ladies emphatically bounced back in the fourth set, notching a 25-17 victory. 

Like the first two sets, the fifth set was extremely close, and spectators eagerly watched as the two rivals battled. However, to the delight of the traveling fans, the Lady Warriors were able to scrape out a 16-14 victory, sealing their third-place finish in the district.

“It felt amazing to beat Round Rock twice in a row,” Lauren Wood ‘21 said. “We had been having a pretty rough season and to come off two great wins against Cedar Ridge and [Vandegrift] and then beat our rival twice in a row was a great way to cap off the end of the regular season and send us into the playoffs.”