BY DANIEL SCHMIDT
THE OBSERVER
BEAUREGARD — Grit. It’s a word that came up repeatedly following the volleyball match between Opelika High School and Beauregard High School.
And where there’s grit, there’s rarely anything pretty or straightforward.
However, that didn’t matter much as the Lady Bulldogs (8-6) dug deep on the road to take the first leg of a home-and-home series with the Lady Hornets (11-6) 3-1 on Sept. 23.
Before a loud and proud crowd at The Hive, Opelika claimed Set 1 25-15, Set 3 25-20 and an intense, pressure-packed Set 4 29-27. In between, Beauregard rode an early advantage to take Set 2 25-20.
McCall Clayton dished out 23 assists and three aces, Addison Bryan made 26 digs and Ava Thomas got on the stat sheet with eight kills for the Lady Bulldogs.
Kalise Culberson led the Lady Hornets with 16 digs, seven kills, five blocks and an assist, while Ellie Burroughs finished with 12 kills, 11 digs, two aces and a block and Anna Marie Conway turned in 32 assists, 14 digs and an ace.
While the rules of competition dictated there had to be a loser, both teams walked off the court with plenty to be proud of.
Opelika head coach Robin Robberts praised both the Lady Hornets for slowing down her hitters and getting timely touches and the Lady Bulldogs for seizing their opportunity late in the fourth set.
“We called a timeout there when it was tied up to make sure we knew nothing was going to hit the floor,” Roberts said. “We had to go all out for those last two points, show what we had and prove we deserved this win. I told them, ‘You’ve worked hard all night for it, don’t let up now.’ That’s the mentality they went in there with.”
Afterwards, Alaina Thomas, who dealt 15 kills and 15 digs, said she didn’t fully process the emotions until the Lady Bulldogs began forming a line for the postgame handshake.
The moment, according to Thomas, was simply only about securing the desperately needed match point.
“I was really just hoping we finished it and we didn’t fall back on ourselves, because we had fought the whole time. I was just really believing in my girls and that we would pull it out, I’m so proud of them,” Thomas said. “We have grit, and we’re determined to win and stay up. We’re like a family, I really like our connection with each other.”
At various points in the match, it appeared Beauregard could claim victory outright or at least take the game to a fifth set.
Particular moments included a 7-1 run to begin the second set and a Herculean effort to fight back from being three-plus points down late in Set 4.
Although his squad fell just short, Beauregard head coach Trent Powell took time to soak in the atmosphere after the final whistle sounded and complimented Opelika.
“That’s the best team we’ve faced all year in my opinion,” Powell said. “We’d adjust, they’d hit it in the hole, then we’d adjust to that and they’d hit it somewhere else. It was a cat and mouse game the whole time. I respect Coach Roberts, she does an awesome job. There was a good crowd, Opelika was here, man that was a lot of fun. And we get to do it again in a couple of weeks at their place.”
While the loss may have somewhat stung the Lady Hornets, they had little time to dwell on it as Class 4A Area 6 co-leaders Elmore County High School (12-5) came to town the very next day.
Powell said the game against a quality Class 6A opponent did well to get Beauregard ready for one of the season’s toughest tasks.
“Everything we do right now is to prepare for tomorrow night against Elmore County. That game right there is going to prepare us for it,” Powell said. “Everything against Elmore County is point to point, and that’s what tonight was. Even at the end, we were down three, and then we pushed back, and we got it even. However, there were a few effort plays I’d like to clean up.”
Roberts echoed Powell, saying she expected the win would help the Lady Bulldogs the night before they faced Central High School (4-13) at home in Class 6A Area 4 play.
“It’s the confidence of knowing you can win in tight situations and trusting your teammate and trusting yourself,” Roberts said. “We’ve talked about that a lot all season. You’ve got to trust both each other and yourself. There’s a reason you’re on that floor as a varsity player. Believe in that and put forth the necessary effort.”
Opelika and Beauregard will meet for a rematch at Opelika High School Sports Arena on Tuesday, Oct. 6, at 5:30 p.m.
Before that game, the Lady Hornets will take on Elmore County in Eclectic on Thursday, Oct. 1, at 5:30 p.m. and Central in Phenix City on Monday, Oct. 5, at 5:30 p.m.
The Lady Bulldogs do not have a game scheduled between Oct. 1 and Oct. 6.
