Plano East freshman Ava Nzegwu attempts to hit the ball around the hands of Wylie defenders Keelyn Green (10) and Isabella Moreno (14) on Tuesday. Photo by Andy Redmond / C&S Media
By David Wolman
For as many wins as the Plano East volleyball team has totaled during a challenging non-district schedule, head coach Sarah Perez said that there have been many hard lessons learned along the way, especially when it has come to finishing a match.
Tuesday’s home match against another tough opponent, Wylie, ranked No. 6 in this week’s Texas Girls Coaches Association Class 6A state poll, provided Plano East with another test in how it was going to respond to adversity.
The Lady Panthers accepted the challenge. After a strong start, Plano East was forced to climb out of a two sets to one deficit. But the Lady Panthers responded by winning the final two sets, capped off by a dominant showing in the final set to earn a 25-21, 24-26, 16-25, 25-22, 15-8 win.
“It’s been a learning preseason,” Perez said. “We’ve had a lot of ups and downs, and holes to climb out of. But tonight, they put all the pieces together. We have been talking the last couple of weeks about how to finish and take ownership and play as a team and play their role. Tonight, they showed that they believed in themselves.”
Plano East (18-6) has played in two of the same preseason tournaments as Wylie (20-4) — Allen Texas Open and Volleypalooza — but didn’t play each other until Tuesday.
The wait proved to be worth it.
Both teams played a relentless style of defense, which included several long rallies, numerous blocks and all-out efforts to dig out the ball.
Plano East’s front row was tasked with attempting to limit the production of a skilled group of hitters for Wylie, a roster that includes Lamar University commit Julia Hudgins, Grambling pledge Aubrey DeGrate, Arizona State commit Paloma Smith and Old Dominion commit Keelyn Green.
Hudgins, DeGrate, Smith and Green combined for 62 kills on the evening, but Plano East’s defense held Wylie to a .187 hitting percentage and forced 27 hitting errors.
In the first set, Wylie took an early 4-1 lead on DeGrate’s first of 18 kills. But Plano East’s defense continued to show a lot of fight. The Lady Panthers rallied and took a 15-8 lead on a Lady Pirates hitting error.
However, Wylie was just as determined. The Lady Pirates rallied, creating an 18-18 tie following a booming kill by Hudgins. But the Lady Panthers always had a response. Anna Lukas restored momentum for Plano East with a kill on the ensuing point, sparking a 7-4 Lady Panthers run to end the opening set.
In the second set, Plano East was one point away from taking a commanding two sets to none advantage in the best-of-five match. However, Wylie’s senior class ensured the Lady Pirates wouldn’t be swept on this night. A DeGrate kill tied the score at 24-24. Green put Wylie ahead with a kill on the next point, and a Plano East hitting error on the ensuing point notched the set win for the Lady Pirates.
“It was truly a point for point match,” Perez said. “Big blocks across the middle. I thought that we had some of the best blocking that we’ve had all preseason. Our blockers showed up. Our defense obviously is phenomenal. They communicate well and play well, and so does Wylie. It was truly an even match. I’m just so proud that we ended up coming out on top.”
Wylie carried that momentum into the third set where the Lady Pirates put forth their most dominant effort of the match. Perez was eager to see how her squad would counter that momentum, which the Lady Panthers did. Plano East broke a 22-22 tie in the fourth set on a kill from Leyna Anderson.
Then, it was all Lady Panthers in the deciding fifth set. A service ace and block by Luz Luna fueled a 5-0 start for Plano East, and it proved to be more than enough separation for the Lady Panthers.
“It was a very big lull in the third set,” Perez said. “They came out and took a set off mentally. They were able to take that and turn it around and come out stronger and come out with more energy and truly played as a team. They grabbed the momentum in the fourth set and took it into the fifth set.”
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