Desiree Felker was definitely proud of the effort.
Felker’s Joplin High School volleyball team overcame a two-set deficit and forced a deciding fifth set with some inspired play.
But in the end, Springfield Central left town with a 3-2 win over the Eagles on Tuesday night in a non-conference clash inside Kaminsky Gymnasium.
The Bulldogs defeated the Eagles 25-22, 25-9, 14-25, 12-25, 15-13.
“I think the game started a little rocky, but we responded in the third set,” Felker said. “It would have been easy for us to pack in it and be done. I’m really proud of our kids for responding like that. I think they showed a lot of grit and a lot of fight.”
It was Joplin’s first setback of the season after two wins. Central improved to 5-1-1.
The first set was tied at eight when the visitors pulled away with a 15-5 surge.
Central was in control of the second set from the start, as the Bulldogs led 12-2 en route to victory.
But the Eagles looked like a different team in the third set. Looking inspired in front of their home crowd, the Eagles took control right away.
“We switched up our lineup a little bit to get some different matchups at the net,” Felker said. “We also talked about just trying to prove to people what Joplin Volleyball is all about. We didn’t feel like our play represented what we have worked on. I think just talking about those things lit a fire in them. It was just their mentality with how they approached the game. They wanted to leave it all out on the floor.”
A pair of aces from Kaya Cooper and a kill from Emma Floyd gave Joplin a 9-1 advantage.
Joplin’s lead grew to 16-2 after a kill from Angelina Schramm. An ace from Abby Hembree and kills from both Abby Edwards and Bailey Owens helped finish off the one-sided set.
The Eagles stormed out to a 10-1 lead in the lopsided fourth set to force a fifth set.
The intense deciding set saw Central go up 13-9.
The Eagles didn’t quit, however, as Floyd had back to back kills and Allie Lawrence added one of her own.
Cooper’s ace tied the set at 13. A Joplin service error and a kill from Central’s Miliana Sylvester gave the Bulldogs the set and the match.
“I’m very proud of the effort in the last three sets,” Felker said. “Unfortunately, it didn’t go our way in the fifth set. But I’m proud of the things they did on the court tonight.”
Floyd, a senior middle blocker, had nine kills. Lawrence, Schramm and Owens contributed eight kills apiece.
Cooper handed out 19 assists, while Hembree added 14 assists. Cooper had six aces and Lawrence added five aces.
Junior libero Paisley Parker had 32 digs. Jayla Hunter added 19 digs and Cooper had 12.
The Eagles will compete at the Hillcrest Tournament on Saturday.
