by Hunter Dawkins, Publisher/AP Member – editor@thegazebogazette.com
On the last night of the regular season for volleyball at the Pass Christian High School Gymnasium, two district champions met again as they did in the start of the year. Despite a tight first set, the Long Beach Lady Bearcats swept the Lady Pirates 3-0 to prepare for the playoffs.
“In the first set, Pass Christian played well, then the girls began to pick up the energy and we came through,” said Long Beach High School Head Volleyball Coach Rebecca Tillman, who won their perennial District 7-5A title and finishing 17-4. “One of my players did get hurt in warmups, so we need to take care and be prepared for the playoffs.”
In each set of the match, the game was tied around the mid-point until Lady Bearcat Seniors Bailee Schmitt, JC King, Samantha Wilson, and Ada Shirk helped Long Beach dominate the later half. For the third and final set, the match was tied was tied at 11-11 and Long Beach went on a 14-0 run for the win.
“We came out and fought really, really hard in the first set (20-25),” said Pass Christian High School Head Volleyball Coach Luke Lee, who won the first district 8-4A title in program history. “Of course in the third set, we had low energy and the girls just looked tired. Extending the sets with hitting errors really killed us and we just have clean that up and use every point we can.”
Finishing at 15-13, 7-1 in district play, Pass Christian will host the first round winner of the MHSAA 4A Playoffs between Region 5, #2 and Sumrall scheduled for Tuesday, October 11, 2022 at 6pm.
Additionally, the Lady Bearcats take on the winner of Florence versus George County game next Tuesday, October 11, 2022 at 6pm in Long Beach.
