With a record of 26-6, Buffalo was determined to come into Republic and compete with Republic on equal footing. And they did, until unforced errors caused the momentum to swing back Republic, who went on to a 25-16 25-15 victory.
Buffalo seized a lead early, but served the ball into the net four times on key points, allowing Republic to fight their way back from the early deficit and win game one. From there, they cruised to an easy win in game two, powered by Brandy Glessner’s nine straight service points to give them a 10-2 lead.
“They definitely lost some momentum when they missed those serves,” says Republic coach Piper Wright. “I hate that they do it, but my team can play at a low level, then out of nowhere they start chipping away, and that’s what we did the first game.”
For the second time in about a week, Republic beat a team with a better win-loss record. They did it last week against Willard, too.
“I take a lot of pride in the schedule we play. That prepares us for games like this, and it’s going to prepare us for districts, and hopefully later down the road,” says Wright. “We have seven losses, but they are all to very, very good teams.”
In addition to her solid service performance in game two, Brandy Glessner had 12 digs to lead the defense for Republic. Emily Preston and Michayla Shanks had two blocks apiece. Lexi Birlew had seven kills. Sarah Kreul had 12 assists.
Republic improves to 26-7. They’re off until district play next week at Carthage, when they’ll meet either Webb City or Joplin.
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In the JV match, Republic won 25-14, 25-21. The Lady Tigers trailed 18-10 at one point in the second game, before going on a 13-1 run.
The freshmen also cruised to victory for Republic,25-11, 25-11.