CONWAY — It would’ve taken quite a performance for the Bryant Lady Hornets to continue unbeaten on the road this season with the assignment they faced on Thursday night. The Conway Lady Wampus Cats, perennial powers in the 7A/6A-Central Conference and the State, came into the match unbeaten in league play and they stayed that way.
The Lady Hornets fell 16-25, 15-25, 12-25 to the Lady Cats.[more]
Conway also won the junior varsity match, 25-15, 25-7.
“The little things and mental mistakes really got us tonight,” stated Lady Hornets coach Beth Solomon. “We played better than we did on Tuesday (in a 3-1 loss at home to Russellville), but the girls have got to work on playing smarter. We’re still a young team, so it’ll come with experience.
“Our major goal for tonight was to play better than we did on Tuesday and to play as a team,” she emphasized. “The girls did that tonight. I don’t feel that the scores depict how well the girls played but that happens with rally-score volleyball.”
Brianna White led Bryant with five kills and one solo block. Lauren Reed contributed 15 digs and Hannah Rice had 15 assists.
“Conway’s always a tough team to beat,” Solomon acknowledged. “They have at least one power hitter every year. This year is no different.
“We’ve got some little things to work on, which we’ll really push on Saturday at the tournament in Russellville,” continued the coach. “We’ve got to get the little things fixed so that we can get out fo this losing streak. I know that the girls can do it.”
The loss dropped Bryant to 3-5 overall and 2-3 in conference play. After playing at Russellville on Saturday, they’ll return to league action at Van Buren on Tuesday, Sept. 21 and at North Little Rock on Thursday, Sept. 23.
In Thursday’s JV match, Britten Hays and Brooke Howell each had three kills. Alyssa Anderson came through with two solo blocks. Taylor West had six assists and Hays served up an ace.
