Three Lady Tigers Named All-Conference

PRAIRIE GROVE FIELDED TEAM OF UNDERCLASSMEN

MARK HUMPHREY ENTERPRISE-LEADER Prairie Grove sophomore Emily Traylor attacks at the net against Decatur junior Talor Thompson. The Lady Tigers swept the Class 2A Lady Bulldogs, 25-16, 25-8, 26-17, on Oct. 10. Traylor was named All-Conference.
MARK HUMPHREY ENTERPRISE-LEADER Prairie Grove sophomore Emily Traylor attacks at the net against Decatur junior Talor Thompson. The Lady Tigers swept the Class 2A Lady Bulldogs, 25-16, 25-8, 26-17, on Oct. 10. Traylor was named All-Conference.

PRAIRIE GROVE -- A trio of players earned All-Conference honors for Prairie Grove for the 2017 volleyball season.

Junior middle hitter/blocker Sophia Nunziato, outside hitter Emily Traylor and senior libero Ali Edgar were named to the 4A-1 All-Conference team. The Lady Tigers finished 10-13-2 overall and 6-8 in the 3A/4A District 1 mixed league. They lost in the first-round of the District 4A-1 tournament to eventual tourney champion Berryville, 25-22, 25-22, 25-13, on Oct. 16.

"They are definitely one of the better teams in the state," said Prairie Grove coach Mat Stewart.

Berryville (29-8-1, 9-1) went on to defeat Huntsville, 25-16, 21-25, 23-25, 25-20, 15-6, in the tournament semifinals and then handed eventual state champion, Shiloh Christian, its only loss to a 4A school all season in the district championship, 25-20, 25-22, 25-22.

"You let them attack and play offense as much as we did, it's going to be a long night," Stewart said. "Their talent just took over in the third set. We couldn't respond."

Stewart made changes along his front line in an effort to compensate for Berryville's height with 6-footers Kelcee Hopper and Hannah Morrell.

"We moved a senior (Alisan Alexander) over to middle hitter," Stewart said. "I felt like that was our best chance."

The versatile Alexander, who cheerfully lined up anywhere she was stationed as Stewart's designated "utility player," was able to drive hits past Bobcat blockers, but the back-row defense offset the Lady Tiger attack.

A week earlier Prairie Grove played well in a 3-set (25-16, 25-8, 25-17) win over Decatur on Tuesday, Oct. 10. In the first set Decatur junior Talor Thompson robbed Prairie Grove hitters of what looked like sure kills by getting her 5-feet-10 frame underneath to dig out those hits and keep the ball in play. The problem was on offense, she was getting very few sets when she rotated to the front line. Prairie Grove breezed through the second and third sets without having to play much defense.

"Prairie Grove has an excellent setter and big hitters. They had all the energy and momentum coming in," said Decatur coach Jessica Castagna. "Basically, they over-powered us. We hung really well in that first set as long as our serves were going. After that it was over."

The Lady Tigers emerged from an 8-10 deficit by fashioning a 10-3 run to grab an 18-13 lead by capitalizing on Decatur mistakes. They rolled to a 25-16 victory after the slow start. The second set was all Prairie Grove. Nunziato served an ace and added a block-kill. Down the stretch, Alexander had back-to-back aces as Prairie Grove won 25-8.

"We usually have more energy and passing than we showed tonight," Castagna said.

Sports on 12/06/2017