The Paris Lady Wildcats and North Lamar Pantherettes squared off in the first of two crosstown showdown district matches on Friday. In Wildcat Gymnasium, the Pantherettes made a loud statement with a strong performance. The solid outing helped the Pantherettes stun Paris in an impressive sweep that came by a final score of 26-24, 25-17, and 26-24.
Since North Lamar defeated Paris, both teams now hold a 2-2 record in district play. The Pantherettes also snapped a two-game losing skid to the Lady ’Cats that dated back to the 2019 season.
North Lamar jumped out to a 10-7 lead early in the first set. However, a tip from Paris senior middle Hannah Gibbons capped a 3-0 run by the home team to tie the score at 10-all. Then, Paris scored four of the next five points to take a 14-11 lead.
Later in the set, Pantherette freshman setter Maleah Holbrook served an ace to trim the deficit to 18-16. On the next point, though, Lady ’Cats sophomore middle Ava Tidwell recorded a big block to extend the lead to 19-16. Paris junior outside hitter Macey McAmis’ ace a few points later gave the Lady ’Cats a 20-18 lead and forced a North Lamar timeout.
Then, the Pantherettes arrived in crunch time.
Freshman outside hitter Lauren Dority recorded a big block and later served an ace to put North Lamar ahead 22-21. After Paris called a timeout, junior middle Presli Chapman blocked a North Lamar kill attempt for a 22-22 tie. The teams remained deadlocked at 24-all after a Gibbons kill. However, a kill from Pantherette sophomore Maddie Walters followed by a Paris error ended the victorious first set for North Lamar.
In the second set, North Lamar was fueled by its adrenaline-pumping win in the opener, and it showed. The Pantherettes led most of the set and seemed to have an answer every time Paris crept closer. Paris tied the set at 12-12, but North Lamar did not flinch.
Kills from senior Ashley Trenchard and Walters, followed by an ace from senior libero Noel Rainey put the visitors up 15-12. Holbrook and Erica King made several plays down the stretch to help the Pantherettes close out the second set. North Lamar was able to close out a tight third set to record the pivotal sweep. With that, sharp play and plenty of grit helped the Pantherettes stun Paris on its home court.
Game statistics
Trenchard paced North Lamar offensively with a team-high 12 kills. Rainey was the defensive anchor for the Pantherettes with 18 digs to go with her service ace. North Lamar senior Macy Richardson had a standout performance with 6 kills and 9 digs, while junior middle Hutton Pointer added 5 kills and 7 blocks.
Senior setter Emma Doyal poured in 16 assists, 4 digs, and 1 ace, while Holbrook had 9 assists, 4 digs, and 2 aces. Dority and Walters combined to finish with 4 kills, 6 blocks, 3 digs, and an ace. Junior defensive specialist Emma Layton chipped in with 5 digs and 1 ace.
Paris statistics were not submitted.
Up next
The Pantherettes aim to win their third district game at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Pittsburg. Meanwhile, the Lady ’Cats seek a bounce-back win at 6 p.m. Tuesday at home against Pleasant Grove. For more sports coverage, click here.