Republic was led by Michayla Shanks with six kills. Emily Preston had ten assists and Jera Pipkin contributed 11 digs defensively to the Lady Tigers. Republic led much of the way in the first game before Carl Junction pulled ahead with a late run.
The Lady Tigers led early in the second game, too, before Carl Junction jumped to the lead midway through and never looked back.
“Second game, I think we did lose concentration a little bit,” says coach Piper Wright. “The serve receive, especially at the end — we have to have that — and it just wasn’t quite there. But other than that, I thought we played well.”
Carl Junction figures to contend for a state championship, and Wright says she was encouraged to see how well the Lady Tigers played against them in their season opener.
“[They have] great defense, aggressive serves, good passing, and a massive block that can be tough for us to deal with when we’re not very tall. I really am encouraged. I feel like we handled it really well,” she says.
Republic is 0-1. The JV team lost 12-25 14-25, and the freshman Lady Tigers lost 15-25 21-25.
The Lady Tigers travel to Jefferson City Saturday for two matches against Columbia Rock Bridge and Helias.
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