Coverage presented by Arkansas Select Volleyball.
6A
For the first time since Aug. 30, the Cabot Lady Panthers lost a match.
Cabot, which had won 21 in a row, fell 2-0 (25-22, 25-22) in the semifinals of the Conway Lady Cat Invitational.
Despite the loss, Cabot keeps the No. 1 rankings in Class 6A because it defeated No. 2 Bentonville twice during the season and defeated Conway No. 3 times on the season, including a 3-0 victory (25-16, 25-22, 25-15) Tuesday night. Conway also swept Little Rock Central, including a 3-2 victory (25-12, 25-14, 24-26, 32-34, 15-6) on Thursday night.
While Bentonville West distinguished itself by reaching the finals of the Lady Cat Invitational, the Lady Wolverines have losses to Conway, Bentonville and Fayetteville during the season.
1. CABOT (28-2)
Previous rank: No. 1
Last week: def. No. 4 Conway 3-0; def. No. 7 Little Rock Central 3-2. Conway Lady Cat Invitational: def. Mountain Home 2-0; def. Jonesboro Westside 2-0. Gold bracket: def. Fort Smith Southside 2-1; lost 2-0 to No. 5 Bentonville West
This week: at Bryant Tuesday
Cabot needs one more victory to wrap up 6A-Central.
“It’s always valuable to compete against quality programs from the 6A West. It helps us grow and prepare for what’s ahead. I’m proud of how our team handled the pressure and continued to compete heard, even if we came up short. We will use what we learned today to finish conference and get ready for state.” — Cabot head coach Anna Robertson
2. BENTONVILLE (23-2)
Previous rank: No. 2
Last week: def. Shiloh Christian 3-1; def. Rogers Heritage 3-0
This week: vs. Springdale Tuesday; vs. No. 10 Fort Smith Northside Thursday; Blue Valley North (Kan.) Tournament Saturday
Kylah Manthe topped 1,000 career assists in the victory over Shiloh Christian and had 36 assists on the week. Lizzie Dorey had 36 assists in both matches. Tristen Hamilton had 23 kills, Evie Venters had 23 kills, 10 digs and 2 blocks. Evie Venters had 24 kills, 5 blocks and 8 digs. Kennedy Baber had 24 kills and 18 digs. Ady Bollinger had 30 digs.
3. FAYETTEVILLE (20-4)
Previous rank: No. 3
Last week: def. No. 6 Fort Smith Southside 3-1; def. No. 8 Springdale Har-Ber 3-2; at Ozark (Mo.) Invitational: lost 2-0 to Lafayette (Mo.); def. Jefferson City (Mo.) 2-0; def. Eureka (Mo.) 2-0; lost 2-0 to Ozark (Mo.); det. St. Francis Borgia (Mo.) 2-1
This week: at Rogers Heritage Tuesday; at Springdale Thursday
Lady Dogs get season sweeps of Southside and Har-Ber and win 3 of 5 in Missouri. Losses came to teams with a combined 57-2 record, including Lafayette that features Shaye Witherspoon, who has committed to Nebraska.
“We had stretches where we played our best volleyball of the season. It was a great opportunity to upgrade and show some grit against some quality opponents…..and just proud of how they competed after two tough conference matches this week.” — Fayetteville head coach Jessica Phelan
4. CONWAY (23-5)
Previous rank: No. 4
Last week: lost 3-0 to No. 1 Cabot. Lady Cat Invitational Saturday: def. Wynne 2-0; def. Siloam Springs 2-0. Gold bracket: def. Greenbrier 2-0; def. No. 8 Springdale Har-Ber 2-1; def. No. 5 Bentonville West 2-1
This week: at Little Rock Central Tuesday; vs. Jonesboro Thursday
London Cabantac had 75 assists in 6 matches Saturday.
“It was a great day of volleyball. It is such a privilege to host such a high caliber tournament with 24 of the top teams across the state in Conway at our schools. We are very thankful to the teams, coaches and parents that played a major role in making this one of the best tournaments in the state. We are extremely proud of our athletes and how they played today. In bracket play we fought back against Har-Ber to force a 3rd set and were able to pull it out to make it to the finals.” — Conway head coach Laura Crow
5. BENTONVILLE WEST (18-9)
Previous rank: No. 5
Last week: def. Rogers 3-2; def. No. 10 Fort Smith Northside 3-1; Conway Lady Cat Invitational: def. Benton 2-0; def. Pulaski Academy 2-0. Gold bracket: def. No. 7 Little Rock Central 2-0; def. No. 1 Cabot 2-0; lost 2-0 to No. 4 Conway
This week: at Shiloh Christian Monday; at No. 6 Fort Smith Southside Thursday
“We are so proud of our girls. Our serve receive was dialed in and our team is playing for one another. The defensive players made great saves today. Laney Chilton led our team defensively. She always sets out setters up for a great ball because she is so consistent and makes great saves where we can be in system a lot. Our hitters really performed today. Audrey Calva and Addi Thurber were extremely dominate offensively in the front and back row. We could not have done what we did without our disciplined block. We are playing high level at the right time and our girls are locked in to being aggressive with every touch.” — Bentonville West head coach Britney Davis
6. FORT SMITH SOUTHSIDE (19-7-1)
Previous rank: No. 6
Last week: lost to No. 3 Fayetteville 3-1; def. Springdale 3-0. Conway Lady Cat Invitational Saturday: def. Baptist Prep 2-1; def. Vilonia 2-0. Gold bracket: lost 2-1 to No. 1 Cabot
This week: vs. No. 10 Fort Smith Northside Tuesday; at No. 5 Bentonville West Thursday
Cabot had Bentonville down 9-5 in the third set against Cabot and lost 15-10.
“Fayetteville is a great team with a lot of fire power and high volleyball IQ. I think we did a really good job fighting and scraping for every point despite losing a starter early in set one. Summer Harrison stepped up big for us and the team as a whole really showed what they were capable of bouncing back in set two and fighting until the end. I love to see two good teams battle like we did last night. A lot of good growth and a lot to be proud of!” — Fort Smith Southside head coach Natalie Throneberry after the loss to Fayetteville in which the third and fourth sets were decided 33-31 and 28-26.
7. LITTLE ROCK CENTRAL (16-5)
Previous rank: No. 7
Last week: def. Bryant 3-1; lost 3-2 to No. 1 Cabot Thursday; at Conway Lady Cat Invitational Saturday: def. Russellville 2-0; def. Brookland. Gold bracket: lost 2-0 to No. 5 Bentonville West
This week: vs. No. 4 Conway Tuesday; at Little Rock Southwest Thursday
Lady Tigers overcome a 2-0 deficit against Cabot to win third and fourth sets 28-26 and 34-32 before losing five set 15-6.
8. SPRINGDALE HAR-BER (15-12)
Previous rank: No. 8
Last week: def. No. 10 Fort Smith Northside 3-2; lost 3-2 to No. 3 Fayetteville Thursday. Conway Lady Cat Invitational Saturday: def. Bauxite 2-0; def. Mount St. Mary 2-0. Gold bracket: def. Little Rock Christian 2-1; lost 2-1 to No. 4 Conway
This week: vs. Rogers Tuesday, at No. 2 Bentonville West Thursday
Har-Ber won the fourth set 25-23 against Fayetteville before falling 15-7 in the fifth.
“I’m proud of the fight our kids had tonight, especially after starting set one the way it did. We are going to continue to work on our mental toughness side of the game and the service line.” — Springdale Har-Ber head coach Cassie Loyd on the loss to Fayetteville.
9. JONESBORO (14-8-1)
Previous rank: No. 9
Last week: lost 3-2 to Jonesboro Westside; def. North Little Rock 3-0.
This week: vs. Little Rock Southwest Tuesday; at No. 4 Conway Thursday
Jonesboro trying to hold off Bryant for fourth place in 6A-Central.
10. FORT SMITH NORTHSIDE (17-15)
Previous rank: No. 10
Last week: lost 3-2 to No. 8 Springdale Har-Ber Tuesday; lost 3-2 to No. 5 Bentonville West Thursday
This week: at No. 6i Fort Smith Southside Tuesday; at No. 2 Bentonville Thursday
Rylee Cofey, Caroline McKinney, Jalliyah Freeman-Rhone and Paisley Hogan had 59 of the team’s 63 kills in the loss to Har-Ber.
5A
Marion (21-2, 13-0) pulled off a reverse sweep (21-25, 18-25, 25-21, 25-21, 15-7) over Valley View (20-5, 9-3) to take command of the 5A-East race and needs one more victory to wrap up the conference title.
Farmington (19-5, 10-0) makes the big move from No. 5 to No. 3 with a 3-2 victory (24-26, 23-25, 25-17, 25-19, 15-13) with a reverse sweep over No. 3 Van Buren (13-6-1, 7-3) to stay undefeated in the 5A-West with four conference matches left. Farmington leads Shiloh Christian (17-11-1, 8-2) by two games and defeated the Lady Saints 3-1 on Sept. 30. The two meet in the regular season finale on Oct. 23.
Hot Springs Lakeside (13-6-2, 10-1) pulled even in the 5A-South with a 3-2 victory (17-25, 25-22, 25-13, 23-25, 15-6) over Benton (18-7, 10-1). Earlier in the week, Lakeside overcame a 21-11 deficit in the third set against Little Rock Christian to win 26-24 in a 3-2 victory. As a result, the Lady Rams move from No. 10 to No. 6.
Arkansas high school volleyball coverage is sponsored by Arkansas Select Volleyball.
1. MARION (21-2)
Previous rank: No. 2
Last week: def. Brookland 3-0; def. Paragould 3-0; def. No. 1 Valley View 3-2
This week: at West Memphis Tuesday
“My girls showed resilience, grit, character, and tenacity tonight. We started out slow and shaky, but we refused to quit! I’m incredibly proud of how we fought and gave ourselves a chance and got the win!” — Marion head coach Lisa Beasley on the victory over Valley View.
2. VALLEY VIEW (20-5)
Previous rank: No. 1
Last week: def. West Memphis 3-0; lost to No. 2 Marion 3-2
This week: at Greene County Tech Monday; vs. Mountain Home Tuesday; at Nettleton Thursday
“Great hard, fought match. We are very capable of being the team I think we are, when we keep our head in the game and play as a team not as individuals. We need to continue trusting the process of playing together as a unit and not waiting for one individual to save the day. We are only as good as the team!” — Valley View head coach Margie McGee on the loss to Marion
5. FARMINGTON (19-5-1)
Previous rank: No. 5
Last week: def. No. 3 Van Buren 3-2; def. Siloam Springs 3-2
This week: at Russellville Tuesday; vs. Harrison Thursday
“I tell our players we have to continue to play our style of volleyball and take care of our side of the net. We stepped up this week against two amazing opponents. I am proud of their never give up mentality!!” — Farmington head coach Kylie Moad on the victories over Van Buren and Siloam Springs
4. VAN BUREN (13-6-1)
Previous rank: No. 3
Last week: lost 3-2 to No. 5 Farmington Tuesday; def. Harrison 3-0
This week: vs. Greenwood Tuesday; at Siloam Springs Thursday
Lady Pointers had their 10-match winning streak snapped by Farmington. Aubrie McGhee had 24 kills and 41 digs in both matches. Maitlyn Dunn had 29 digs in both matches.
5. MOUNT ST. MARY (19-8–1)
Previous rank: No. 4
Last week: def. Jacksonville 3-0; def. Sylvan Hills 3-0 Conway Lady Cat Invitational: lost 2-t0 Bauxite, lost 2-0 to Springdale Har-Ber. Silver Bracket: lost 2-1 to Pottsville
This week: at Baptist Prep Monday; at No. 9 Little Rock Christian Academy Tuesday; at Vilonia Thursday
“It was a fun, competitive day with lots of team bonding! We were missing a few key players, but it was a great experience and gave us some good things to work on before state.” — Mount St. Mary head coach Olivia Stroud.
6. HOT SPRINGS LAKESIDE MTXE (13-6-2)
Previous rank: No. 10
Last week: def. No. 9 Little Rock Christian Academy 3-2; def. Hot Springs 3-0; def. Benton 3-2
This week: at Sheridan Tuesday; at Lake Hamilton Thursday
Lady Rams overcome 21-11 deficit in third set against Little Rock Christian to win 26-24. Won fifth set against Benton 15-6.
“This was such a great team win as we are working to get better together. Our defense was tough and going for everything. The atmosphere was unreal.” — Hot Springs Lakeside MTXE head coach Rhonda Thigpen on the victory over Benton.
7. BENTON (18-7)
Previous rank: No. 6
Last week: def. Texarkana 3-0; lost 3-2 to No. 10 Hot Springs Lakeside MTXE Thursday; Conway Lady Cat Invitational Saturday: def. Pulaski Academy 2-0; lost 2-0 to Bentonville West. Silver bracket: def. Russellville 2-1; def. Baptist Prep 2-0; def. No. 7 Shiloh Christian 2-1
This week: vs. Lake Hamilton Tuesday; vs. White Hall Thursday
“I’m extremely proud of my Panthers. We served tough all three sets and especially in the third set. The front row touched many balls and slowed them down enough for our defense to get good digs.” — Benton head coach Michelle Shoppach on winning the silver bracket at the Lady Cat Invitational.
8. SHILOH CHRISTIAN (17-11-1)
Previous rank: No. 7
Last week: lost 3-1 to Bentonville; def. Alma 3-1; def. Russellville 3-1 Conway Lady Cat Invitational Saturday: lost 2-0 to Greenbrier; def. Episcopal Collegiate 2-0. Silver bracket: def. No. 8 Siloam Springs 2-1; def. Bauxite 2-1; lost 2-1 to No. 6 Benton
This week: vs. Bentonville West Monday; at Siloam Springs Tuesday; vs. Harrison Thursday
Lady Saints reach silver bracket finals of Conway Lady Cat Invitational.
“I’m extremely proud of how we responded after the first pool play match against Greenbrier. We lost in the finals of silver against Benton, but showed great fight and pushed it to the third set after being down 19-24 and came back to win it 27-25. We are looking forward to a great week against Bentonville West, Siloam Springs, and Greenwood.” — Shiloh Christian head coach Nathan Bodenstein
9. LITTLE ROCK CHRISTIAN ACADEMY (16-6)
Previous rank: No. 9
Last week: lost 3-2 to No. 10 Hot Springs Lakeside Monday; def. Vilonia 3-0. Conway Lady Cat Invitational: def. Bryant 2-1; def. Pottsville 2-0. Gold bracket: lost to Springdale Har-Ber 2-1
This week: vs. Mount St. Mary Tuesday; at Little Rock Parkview Thursday
Lady Warriors trying to forget about blowing a 21-11 lead in the third set of a 3-2 loss to Hot Springs Lakeside.
“We didn’t finish. We had game point 6 or 8 points in a row. It got in our heads, we made too many errors and were afraid to make an error. We had to go back to basics and not send easy balls over the net and they were capitalizing and sending them back to a lot harder. We have to be able to finish. Even if we won, we gave up the lead in parts and not get comfortable and get down.” — Little Rock Christian head coach Lacey Rowan.
NO. 10 GREENBRIER (12-11)
Previous rank: Not ranked
Last week: def. Sylvan Hills 3-1, def. Beebe 3-0. Conway Lady Cat Invitational: def. Episcopal 2-0; def. Jonesboro Westside 2-0. Gold bracket: lost 2-0 to Conway
This week: vs. Vilonia Tuesday; at Maumelle Thursday
Lady Panthers have taken their lumps against a tough schedule, reached the gold bracket with wins over 3A and 4A contenders Episcopal and Jonesboro Westside.
DROPPED OUT
No. 8 Siloam Springs
