The Thrall Tigerettes overcame a poor serving night to post a 25-17, 25-20, 25-10 sweep of the Milano Lady Eagles Tuesday night. It was the final non-district game for the Tigerettes (25-13 overall, 6-0 District 26-2A).
“We definitely did not play one of our better games,” Thrall Coach Bethany Grissom said, after the match. “We had way to many service errors and we had other mistakes that hurt us as well.”
Thrall committed 18 service errors in the three-set match, but were still able to get the win in part due to their play on the net. Melaina Grissom and Mia Moellenberg combined for 21 kills on the night. Melaina Grissom knocked down 13, while Moellenberg tallied eight.
Milano kept the first set close most of the way. The Lady Eagles fell behind early, but rallied to take an 11-9 lead, and the score was knotted at 12 each on a Milano serving error. Dezi Lopez served the Tigerettes out to a 15-12 advantage only to see the Lady Eagles rally again, tying the game at 16.
The Tigerettes regained the lead at 17-16 and Brynn Leschber served up six straight points to give Thrall some breathing room at 23-16. Moellenberg then finished off the set with a kill to the center of the Milano defense.
Milano took control early in the second set and took out a 6-3 lead. The score went back and fourth until Melaina Grissom hit a kill to the back corner. She added a second kill that put the Tigerettes ahead 18-14. The Lady Eagles closed to within 22-20 before Grace Skrhak finished off the set.
The outcome of the third set was never in question. Thrall led 9-1 on the strength of the serves Emily Holybee and Skrhak. Melaina Grissom, Moellenberg, and Leschber were able to control the net, keeping Milano off balance and sealing the win.
“I thought we played much better in the third set,” Coach Grissom said. “We cut our service errors down to three and we did a good job controlling the net.”
Thrall will travel to Holland on Saturday and will close out the regular season at home on Tuesday against the Thorndale Lady Dogs, with the district title on the line.
“We know we can’t take it easy in these last two,” Coach Grissom said of the final two matches. “We know we’ll have to play solid volleyball, especially against Thorndale.”
