By Amanda Perkins
Mountain View, Mo. — The MV-BT/Liberty Lady Eagles defeated the Willow Springs Lady Bears in two sets Tuesday night, 25-18 and 25-12.
Lady Eagles coach Shari Tune said her team has been working to find the right chemistry, and they seemed to find it tonight, jumping out to an early lead in the first set after installing a new rotation.
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Liberty’s defense helped them to a 10-point lead, 19-9, but the Lady Bears battled back late in the contest, putting up five unanswered points to cut the lead in half. The host team continued their steady attack, closing the contest with a 25-18 win.
“We are really good at moments and really not good at moments,” said Coach Tune. We make a lot of errors but we are a very aggressive team. These girls are working hard, and I’m positive about our new rotation.”
In the second set, senior Brenley Stearns racked up service points and helped the Lady Eagles jump out to another ten-point lead. Liberty didn’t relinquish their early momentum and took the 25-12 victory. McKaelin Roy added 5 digs and MaKayla Elliott 3 kills for the Lady Eagles.
“They are just a really good team,” said Lady Bears coach Valarie Jackson of the Lady Eagles. “You have to play a near perfect game. We didn’t pass very well the first set, we passed alright the second set, and their defense picked us apart. They are just a solid team. Hopefully we will see them again in districts and we will hope to play a little better and give them a good run.”
Coach Tune noted the play of Ally Smith and Brenley Stearns. “Ally is very aggressive and will give me 120% all of the time,” she said. “Brenley played well. When she’s on fire, she’s hard to deal with.” She added, “I’m proud of my whole team. We are a balanced team, so that’s nice to have.”
Stearns had 12 kills and 5 aces on the night.
For the Lady Bears, Grace Bailey had 5 blocks and 4 kills; Cassidy Crewse, 6 digs and 2 kills; Kameron Woody, 3 digs, 3 service points, 2 kills, and 2 assists, and Jessica Miller, 7 service points, 3 aces, and 1 kill.
Willow Springs’ record now stands at 17-6, and Liberty moves to 16-5.
