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Every point counts: PCA wins district, takes top spot with sweep of Ursuline
BY Kevin Hageland, khageland@starlocalnews.com
Prestonwood Christian Academy volleyball knew what was at stake Tuesday night.
A win over Ursuline wasn't enough. The Lady Lions (13-1 in district) needed a sweep to assure the No. 1 seed out of TAPPS 1-5A and co-district title with Bishop Lynch as a four-game victory would necessitate a coin flip for the top spot and a five-game win would give the top spot to the Lady Friars.
So when the Lady Bears held a big lead in Game 1, the Lady Lions were taken aback.
Prestonwood wasn't about to give up its claim to the No. 1 seed though, surging back to take the opening set and eventually register a sweep (29-27, 25-17, 25-18).
It was the second sweep the Lady Lions needed in the past week to win district.
The other came last Thursday against a Bishop Lynch team that was widely viewed as the best private school team in the state and had already swept Prestonwood.
"After that first match, all the girls could talk about was Oct. 18 when we would play them again," O'Neal said. "And this one went exactly how we wanted it to."
Another sweep was in store last Thursday, only this time it was the Lady Lions that reigned supreme (25-23, 25-19, 25-18).
"In everybody's mind Bishop Lynch was the best, so this really showed what we can do," O'Neal said. "And it gave us a lot of confidence too because we know not only can we compete with the best teams in the state, we can beat them."
That win set the stage for Tuesday's regular season finale as both Prestonwood and Bishop Lynch were 12-1 in district but the Lady Lions had lost only seven games in 1-5A as opposed to eight by the Lady Friars. With Bishop Lynch playing Argyle Liberty Christian, Prestonwood knew it would likely need a sweep to keep its tiebreaker advantage intact.
The first game Tuesday against Ursuline was a struggle, but Prestonwood got big front and back row play from senior Katie Staiger (18 kills, 11 digs) and junior Ashley Morgan (12 kills, 17 digs) when it was needed most.
"Of course, Katie is our go-to person and she was huge for us again," O'Neal said. "But there were several other players that stepped up too; Ashley was nails for us."
After a tense opener, Prestonwood fared better in the ensuing sets.
"We were a lot more steady in Games 2 and 3," O'Neal said. "One of the first things we did was serve better, because it was like we were just throwing out free balls in Game 1, and that allowed us to keep Ursuline out of system. Plus, I think they were a little deflated after the way the first game played out.
Helping add to Ursuline's deflation was the trio of senior Brooke Gajdica, juniors Courtney Novak and Haley Wolken.
Gajdica was a strong defensive presence while Wolken (23 assists, six digs, three aces) and Novak (12 assists, 10 digs, five kills, four aces) brought stability to both the passing and serving games for the Lady Lions.
With that win came a co-district title and No. 1 playoff seed.
Usually Prestonwood would open the postseason on Saturday, but area opponent Beaumont Kelly couldn't make that date, so the Lady Lions will begin the playoffs by hosting Kelly at 4 p.m. today. This is a rematch from last year's area round with Prestonwood dispatching of Kelly (25-7, 25-8, 25-14).
"This is still a huge match for us," O'Neal said. "It's the kick-off to everything we've worked for all season."
A win today would move Prestonwood into the regionals and a likely neutral-site match Tuesday against district foe Trinity Christian Academy, which finished fourth in 1-5A. Defeating the Trojans would advance the Lady Lions to the TAPPS State Tournament (Nov. 2-3 at the Blossom Athletic Center in San Antonio), a spot the program hasn't been in since winning the last of its three straight state titles in 2005.
Heading into the playoff opener, adding a fourth championship appears a viable goal.
"I absolutely think the potential is there for us to win state," O'Neal said. "I'm sure all coaches say that, but you know when you have a group that is special."
Lady Cardinals open playoffs on the road
The John Paul II volleyball team lost its regular-season finale to Trinity Christian Academy (25-16, 25-15, 25-10) but is still securely in the playoffs as the Lady Cardinals are the No. 5 seed out of 1-5A with the top six teams advancing.
John Paul opens the postseason on the road at 1 p.m. Saturday against TAPPS 2-5A champ San Antonio Incarnate Word.
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