GIDDINGS – It was business as usual for the Thrall Tigerettes Tuesday night, with a pair of sweeps against the Giddings Lady Buffaloes and the Hallettsville Lady Brahmas.
The Tigerettes, fresh off a strong showing at the Academy tournament over the weekend, played well most of the night. In their opening match with Hallettsville, the Tigerettes rolled to a 25-18, 25-17, 25-11 win. Dominance on the net and solid serving, along with a good pass-receive game, guided Thrall to the win. The Lady Brahmas kept it close in the opening two sets, but ultimately, it was the Tigerettes' game at the net that proved to be too much to overcome.
“I thought we played well in the first match,” said Thrall Coach Bethany Grissom. “We played well at times, but we still had some little lapses. I’m proud of how the girls battle through them, though.”
Against the host Lady Buffaloes, Thrall continued to cruise, winning the first two sets by identical 25-15 scores. But, in the third set, Giddings finally found its groove and looked to be on the verge of forcing a fourth set when the Lady Buffaloes took a 22-15 lead. The Tigerettes had other plans, however. After getting a side-out to trim the lead to seven, Thrall, behind the serving of Dezi Lopez, ran off 10 straight points to rally for the 25-22 win and the sweep.
“That third set was a lot of fun,” Grissom said. “Giddings played a lot better in that set and took advantage of some mistakes, but we did a great job battling back to get the win.”
The pair of wins run the Tigerettes' record to 18-4 on the season. They will have the weekend off, before playing host to the Iola Lady Bulldogs (27-1), who are currently ranked second in the latest Texas Girls Coaches Association poll.
“Iola is really good,” Grissom said. “They have everyone back from a regional finalist last year. It’ll be a tough match, but it’s going to be fun.”
