SMHS VOLLEYBALL
San Marcos’ upset attempt might have come up short, but the Rattlers gave the No. 4 ranked Austin High Maroons everything they had.
The Maroons survived the Rattlers as San Marcos fell 3-0 [25-15, 25-21, 25-23] to Austin High in a thrilling game at the Snake Pit.
“I was really impressed with how our girls responded,” Ollett said. “Several people stepped up. Amaya [Rodriguez] and Halynn [Hernadanez] stepped up off the bench and we had a lot of good touches. We struggled with serving in bounds and working on not getting trapped. But I’m impressed how we responded against a team with very talented hitters.”
The Rattlers found themselves trailing in the first 5-1 but went on a 5-2 run to cut Austin High’s lead to 7-6. The Maroons were able to build their lead up to 13-9, but the Rattlers once again pushed back and cut the lead down to 16-15 after a 6-3 run.
Austin High slammed the door on a Rattler comeback by going on a 9-0 run to win the first set at 25-15.
In the second set, the Maroons jumped out to a 4-0 lead before going up 10-5 on the Rattlers for their largest lead of the set. But San Marcos went on a 10-5 run and tied the game at 15-15 following four straight kills from outside hitter Brinkley Reeves.
The Maroons and the Rattlers went back and forth before the game was tied at 20-20. Austin High outscored San Marcos 5-1 in the final stretch to take the second set 25-21 and go up 2-0 in match play.
Austin High once again jumped out to an early lead at 12-6 for their largest lead of the third set. Yet again, the Rattlers made their comeback and went on a 10-4 run to tie the set at 16-16.
San Marcos continued to attack the Maroon defense and soon had a 2321 lead over Austin High. But the third set win was not to be as the Maroons closed out the set on a 4-0 run to defeat the Rattlers 25-23 to complete the sweep at 3-0.
Despite the loss, Ollett was proud of the Rattlers’ effort and hoped their performance showed how talented the team really is.
“I hope the girls can take away that they can compete with the big names,” Ollett said. “They are a good team that works together. We pointed out the little stuff that we need to work for us to take that next step.”
San Marcos will be back home this week in a showdown with the Austin St. Michaels Warriors. Tipoff is scheduled for Tuesday night at 6:30 p.m. from the Snake Pit in San Marcos.
cmcwilliams @sanmarcosrecord.com Twitter: @ColtonBMc
