by MARK CAUL
- Felina Ortiz and the rest of her Lehman teammates got off to a slow start in Wimberley before rebounding to capture the Friendship Consolation title. (Photo by Judy Cooper)
Despite getting off to a slow start on the first day of the annual Wimberley Tex-Fest Tournament, the Lehman Lady Lobos were able to rebound in the bracket round the following day with a couple of big wins to secure the Friendship Consolation title.
“I really like the way we responded on the second day after we didn’t play our best in pool play,” Lehman Head Coach Gloria Sandoval said. “We were definitely much more efficient and focused on Saturday.”
Brazilian exchange student Mariana Filipi had an outstanding tournament for the Lady Lobos – leading the way with a team-high 16 kills.
“Mariana has been our most consistent hitter so far this year,” said Sandoval. “She always seems to find the right spots and does a great job of getting us kills when we need them.”
Lehman drew a couple of tough matchups in pool play on the first day of play – squaring off against Clemens, Leander Rouse and Canyon Lake.
The Lady Lobos dropped a three-set match to Canyon Lake (10-25, 25-20, 25-8), fell to Rouse (25-13, 25-21) and lost to Clemens (25-17, 25-20).
The second day of play was a different story for Lehman as they beat old district foe Manor (25-20, 25-15) and then Gladewater Sabine (25-20, 25-12) to win the consolation title.
In their most exciting match of the tournament, the Lady Lobos dropped a three-set heartbreaker to Kingsville Academy (28-26, 26-28, 19-25) in the Friendship bracket opener.
Four consecutive service aces from Ylissa Munoz brought the Lady Lobos back from an early deficit and helped them surge ahead in the first set.
After Kingsville picked up a close win in the second set, the Lady Lobos were able to take a slim lead in the deciding match fueled by sophomore Imani Fairman, who turned in her best performance of the season for Lehman.
But a late blocking error from the Lady Lobos and then a pair of aces down the stretch gave the Vikettes the breathing room they needed to secure the win.
“I’m proud of the team for stepping up and playing better on the second day,” Sandoval said. “We put ourselves in position to win all three of the games on Saturday. We’ll go back to work and get ready for the next one.”
The Lady Lobos will travel to Pflugerville Hendrickson on Friday before hosting Luling on Aug. 24.
