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It took a lot of work to remain perfect.
The state's second-ranked Centerville Lady Tigers fought off a determined upset bid by the 23rd-ranked Salado Lady Eagles to remain unbeaten and advance to the Class 2A Region II tournament with a 25-22, 25-17, 20-25, 25-23 victory at A&M Consolidated's Tiger Gym.
Senior outside hitter Ashley Hardcastle had 22 kills, 11 digs and two blocks to lead Centerville before almost full stands of wildly cheering fans for both team.
There was much to cheer about in a back-and-forth effort punctuated by well-played defense and clutch play in Game 4 by Centerville. The Lady Tigers moved to 45-0 and avoided what would have been their first five-game match of the season.
"That was our sixth or seventh game lost this season," Centerville coach Jason Evans said with a nervous laugh. "We haven't gone five, and I didn't want to tonight."
The win sends District 15-2A champion Centerville to the regional tournament, which begins Friday at the Garland ISD Athletic Complex. Salado's season ended at 24-12.
"Being a senior and knowing this could be your last game, it brings out so much energy from you," Hardcastle said. "I was just trying to say on every point to keep our heads up, keep going and don't give up."
Centerville didn't, and neither did the Lady Tigers' opponents.
"Salado was a good volleyball team with four legitimate hitters, and they played a lot of defense," Evans said. "It was hard to put the ball down. They had a solid double block to take the cross-court hit away, so we went down the line and their libero [Lindsey Coffey]) covered that."
The Lady Tigers trailed 10-3 in Game 4 and didn't take their first lead until the left-handed-hitting Hardcastle went down the left line for a winner and a 19-18 advantage. Salado's last lead came at 23-22 when Kamylle Palomino pushed a winner into an open spot. Centerville closed out the tense victory by taking advantage of a pair of mistakes by the Lady Eagles. Danielle Hazzard's kill attempt hit into the net, and Salado was called for touching the net on the final point.
That was a rarity for the Lady Eagles, whose defense, led by Hazzard's positioning and solid play to cover the power game, forced Hardcastle to alter her attack from an early display of cross-court power. She had eight impressive kills in Game 1, when Centerville pushed a 10-10 tie to an 18-11 advantage with Brittney Rutledge leading the way during the run. Rutledge finished the match with eight kills and two blocks.
Sophomore middle hitter Leanne Jones was Centerville's catalyst in Game 2, planting an overset and following up with a kill down the middle of the court to give the Lady Tigers a 19-13 lead.
Salado broke open a tight Game 3 on a kill and a block by Palomino to unravel a 19-19 tie and give the Lady Eagles a lead they didn't relinquish. Jenna Sebek got the final point of the game with a block against Jones, who had 14 kills and nine blocks in the match.
Junior middle hitter Ashley West had 15 blocks for Centerville.
"I was proud of our hustle," Evans said. "We lost a little ball control in Games 3 and 4. Our passes weren't as sharp or crisp, but our hustle was still good. I'm proud of our kids for showing that resiliency and pulling out the win."
