The Bowie Junior High 8A volleyball team battled through tough competition to take three wins and the championship title at the Jacksboro Tournament on Oct. 1.
The 8A team opened Saturday’s competition against a tough Graham team that made Bowie fight for the win, but the Lady Rabbits came out on top by 25-23, 21-25, 15-11.
“Graham was a great, scrappy team,” said Bowie Volleyball Coach Jaimie Hickey. “They had some great saves and we often found ourselves scrambling to recover. We found a rhythm late in the third set to pull out the win.”
Carson Matlock powered the offense with five ace serves and four kills while BJ Mills added in five ace serves of her own and an additional two kills.
The Bowie 8A team played their easiest game of the day in the second round, taking an easy 25-12, 25-12 win against the Jacksboro Lady Tigers. Neely Price provided five ace serves, three kills and two blocks during the second match.
“After this game I addressed what I call the ‘second set conundrum.’ We tend to relax in the second set of every match and we have to play a game of catch up. This happened all day to us, but we always found a way to keep ourselves in it,” explained Hickey.
The Lady Rabbits faced Iowa Park in the third and final set of the day for the championship round in a game Hickey called their best all year to take the 25-22, 20-25, 15-11 win and the title.
“We kept our game fast, utilizing our hands more on free-balls, and really working the ball at the net,” said Hickey. “Iowa Park is a great team. They pushed us out of our comfort zone. They blocked really well at the net and we made adjustments to get around it.”
The coach said she is proud of the perseverance and tenacity her girls showed during the tournament.
“The girls did a very good job of keeping each other lifted up during each set and learned some very valuable lessons that will carry us through the rest of the season,” said the coach.”
The Bowie 7A team fell to Boyd 21-25, 23-25 in tournament play despite three aces and two kills from Emily Cuera, two aces and two kills from Olivia Gill and two aces, three kills from Gracie Duke.
The Lady Rabbits were victorious against Iowa Park in a three set win by 25-16, 22-25, 16-14 with a huge seven ace serves from Duke.
The 7A team dropped two sets to the host team Jacksboro, 22-25, 12-25, despite Ziba Robbins putting down four aces. Duke paced the offense with three kills, Cuera added two aces and two kills and Melenie Cantu had two kills and a block.
In regular season action, the teams faced a long drive on the road to Childress Monday night.
The Bowie 8A team topped Childress in a two-set win 25-11, 25-19 with a whopping six ace serves and one kill from Julia Witt, three kills from Carson Matlock and four aces and one kill from BJ Mills.
Hickey said her team played a strong first set, and then went into their second set slump, falling behind 2-8.
“After a time-out, we stepped up and started passing the ball well,” recalled Hickey. “We struggled keeping our intensity and enthusiasm up during low points, but once they started playing at the level expected of them, they really came alive. I am very proud of their performance. We are excited to wrap up the season on our home court.”
The Bowie 8B team came away with a two-set win by 25-20, 25-15. Kenzie Short put down one kill and four ace serves. Haley Webb provided an additional three ace serves and one kill.
The 7B team also came away with a win against Childress, topping the home team 25-20, 15-25, 15-6 with eight ace serves from Kaylie Kinney.
“I am so proud of the girls for pulling off this win,” said Bowie Volleyball Coach Shawnda Rasco.
On Sept. 24 the teams competed against a tough Henrietta team, where the 7A team fell in two sets 19-25, 8-25 despite two aces and two kills from Gracie Duke and five aces from Emily Cuera.
There has been a schedule change. Instead of playing City View at home Oct. 8, the Bowie Junior High teams will play the Lady Mustangs Oct. 11. They wrap up the season with Holliday on Oct. 15 and Nocona on Oct. 22. All three games will be played in Bowie.

To see the full list of results, pick up a copy of the mid-week edition of the Bowie News.