Volleyball Roundup: East Prairie beats Cooter in tiebreaker set; Portageville sweeps Charleston

Against all odds, East Prairie defied expectations and orchestrated a stunning comeback over Cooter at EPHS on Thursday, September 7.

The Lady Eagles (2-3) batted back to defeat the Wildcats (2-3) with set scores of 22-25, 25-18, 23-25,

25-12 and 19-17.

“Lydia Valencia took charge of the team in those last moments,” said East Prairie coach Kelle Goodding. “She was loud, aggressive and rallied them to victory.”

Portageville (4-1) has a significantly easier time against Charleston (0-4), a team struggling to find its footing.

The Lady Bulldogs dominated the match, winning with decisive set scores of 25-9, 25-16 and 25-8.

“The goal is to get better as the season goes on,” said Portageville coach Sasha Kellam. “We always want to be great at the fundamentals. I felt we got the chance to work on some of those fundamentals last night that we stress on, and I also, notice some areas we can improve on. I was proud of my girls for going out and taking care of business. Overall, the whole team had some bright moments throughout the match."

The team’s top performers were Mia Scherer (12 assists, four aces, three digs and two kills), Laney Stone (eight digs, seven kills, two assists and one ace), Ja’Niya Smith (eight digs, five aces and four kills), Jayla Weddington (eight kills, one assist and one dig), Bryleigh Adams (one kill, two digs, and one assist), Glo Farmer (four kills, three aces and three digs), Lexi Priggel (three assists, two kills and one ace), Aaliyah Larry (five assists and one dig) and Lily Beth Priggel (one assist).

"It is early in the season, so we are working on getting more consistent," Stone said. "Everyday we are constantly trying to improve. Every time we step on the court we want to dominate."

Portageville will compete in the SEMO Dig for Life Tournament, beginning Friday, September 8, while East Prairie will host Senath-Hornersville (5-1) on Tuesday, September 12.