FARMINGTON - A determined Farmington squad pushed Siloam Springs to the brink, (22-25, 22-25, 25-22, 25-18, 19-17) before the Lady Panthers clawed out a 19-17 victory in the fifth set Aug. 30.
The nonconference match was played in front of a raucous crowd enjoying volleyball action at Cardinal Arena with Panther supporters trading jabs with the Farmington student section.
Farmington jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the best-of-5 volleyball match, winning the first two games by twin scores of 25-22. Siloam Springs roared back winning games three (25-22) and four (25-18) on the strength of a career-high 26 kills by junior 5-feet-10 outside hitter Shaylon Sharp and 18 from sophomore Chloe Price, who contributed 27 digs, 20 assists and 3 aces. Senior setter Meg Gray topped Siloam Springs with 31 assists.
Siloam Springs held leads of 5-3, 9-4 and 11-7 in game-five, but couldn't shake Farmington. Needing twice as many points, 8 compared to 4 for Siloam Springs, to win; Farmington battled valiantly. Claudia Oxford and Kailee Purifoy recorded kills and Camryn Journagan chipped in an ace when the Panthers let the ball fall. Siloam Springs coach Rose Cheek-Willis called time-out and the Lady Panthers responded with Ellie Lampton's kill from a Gray set. They reached match-point, at 14-11, on Lampton's ace; but Farmington refused to go quietly.
Farmington Libero Brandy Wallace fought off a Sharp hit which led to Anna Dutton's kill, the first of three straight Farmington points to tie the contest, at 14-14. Ella Wilson's block-kill and Carley Antwine's ace. There were ties at 15 and 16 before Farmington reached match-point, at 17-16, on an Oxford kill. Price dished up a Sharp kill to knot the score a final time at 17-all. A Sharp serve was not returned when a dig went over the net but out-of-bounds sending Siloam Springs to match-point at 18-17. Miscommunication on the back row broke down the Farmington defense when Hadlee Hollenback sent the ball across with a two-handed push. There was no hit and Siloam Springs won, 19-17, to claim the match 3 games to 2.
Farmington coach Marshall Ward said the speed of the game, once Siloam Springs got their offense on track, was a major factor.
"They were the fastest offense that we've played in a few years," Ward said. "It's hard to prepare for that when you're not used to seeing it. When we were in 4A, we didn't see that speed and even in 5A I don't think we've seen that speed."
Ward said he fully expects 6A opponents Greenwood and Russellville to play at a similar pace on offense.
"I hope playing teams that fast just makes playing our 5A teams seem slower, that's the hope," Ward said.
Cheek-Willis said she hopes the Lady Panthers learned a valuable lesson, not to under-estimate an opponent.
"I've always said Farmington is a very athletic team," Cheek-Willis said. "They came out determined to beat us no matter if we're 6A and they're 5A. They were aggressive, they attacked. They were very scrappy. They are not a team you can take for granted. I'm proud that our girls kept their composure. In game five, Farmington had the lead. They had their backs against the wall, but they kept their composure."
The win was the first of the season for Siloam Springs, which began with seven straight losses, mostly against 7A teams.
Ward would have preferred to flip the scores and have Farmington win, but in spite of the loss, was happy with the Lady Cardinals' performance.
"That was our first match against a 6A opponent," Ward said. "The last few years they (Siloam Springs) have been stacked with 7A. For our girls to never lay it down, that's the kind of team you love to coach."
Sports on 09/07/2016