Eaglettes prevail in battle of volleyball heavyweights
Photos by David Kapitan
The Eaglette lineup of Lauren Gomez, Kaylie Nilius, Payton Williams, Gillian Hanks, Courtney Slider and Jenna Stanley celebrate after a Gomez block at the net led to a Canton point.
Two of the top 4A volleyball teams in the state of Texas, the Canton Eaglettes and Emory Rains Lady Cats, added another thrilling chapter to what has steadily become one of the premiere matchups in all of East Texas sports.
Canton, ranked 13th in the latest Texas Girls Coaches Association 4A State Poll, and Emory Rains, ranked 26th, split their first two meetings in district play.
On Sept. 22 in Emory, the Lady Cats raced out to an early lead only to see Canton come back to force a decisive fifth set. Rains managed to weather the Eaglette challenge, pulling out a 29-27, 25-22, 17-25, 23-25, 15-13 win.
Canton bounced back from their heartbreaking defeat to upend Emory Rains in the second meeting by defending their home court with a 25-21, 24-26, 25-16, 25-13 win.
The third meeting between the two teams, played at a neutral site in Wills Point Oct. 30, featured much of the same drama that the first two meetings produced with Rains building up an early lead only to watch Canton come roaring back for a 14-25, 25-27, 25-23, 25-20, 15-5 win.
Struggles in the return game spelled trouble for the Eaglettes early on, with Canton misplaying balls and passes to give Emory Rains too many easy points in the first set.
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