Broncos blank Tors, clinch share of district championship

MOSS BLUFF — Sam Houston overcame early struggles to beat Sulphur in straight sets 25-22, 25-17, 25-16 Tuesday and clinch at least a share of its first district championship since 2019.

The Broncos (23-9, 6-1) shares the Division I, District 2 championship with Acadiana (22-8, 6-1), who beat Lafayette in straight sets Tuesday 25-22, 25-18, 25-20.

“I am excited,” Sam Houston head coach Rene Fontenot said. “Tonight is big. In our district, it could be anybody’s game.

“We just struggled to get things consistently going. It wasn’t very fluid, but they followed our game plan. We made a few adjustments.”

Sulphur (20-9, 4-2), last year’s district champ, jumped to a 4-0 lead in the first set with the help of Keelie Seaford’s three aces, but Sam Houston battled back to tie it at 7-7 on an ace by Kat Manuel. The set went back and forth before the Broncos took control with a 4-0 run with a kill by Mallory Wills and Addie Melendy’s ace.

The second set was also a back-and-forth battle before the Broncos used a 7-1 run to pull away. The Broncos trailed early in the third set 3-1 but settled down to close out the match.

“They looked so nervous in the beginning,” Fontenot said. “They looked calmer and settled in, so that was better.

“They started relaxing and playing. It is exciting to have all this, but it is also out of the norm. This is the second time the band has come, and it is amazing.”

The Tors owned at least a two-point lead in each set but were plagued by errors, including eight on serves in the first set and six in the second set.

“On our side, we just didn’t play to the best of our ability tonight,” Sulphur head coach Bridget Coppels said. “It stinks because this was a wonderful volleyball environment.

“The band and the fans were packed to the top bleachers and we just didn’t play our best volleyball tonight, so that is a bummer. But the best thing about volleyball is you get so many games in a season, so tomorrow we will go back to practice. We have another good Southside team on Thursday, and another opportunity to get a little bit better than we did tonight.

“With all the errors we made, we still made it as competitive as possibly could be. I am proud of them for that, but we really need to do a better job of cleaning up the errors on our side.”

Emma Gentry led Sam Houston with seven kills and five digs, and Jacie Semien added 16 assists and three aces.

The Tors got 13 kills from Finli Dennis, while Seaford finished with six kills, four aces and 16 assists.

Both teams entered the game in the top 10 in the Division I power ratings.

Sam Houston will close out the season this weekend at the Episcopal of Acadiana Spooktacular tournament. Sulphur will travel to Southside on Thursday then the Episcopal School of Acadiana tournament this weekend.

SportsPlus

Jim Beam

Jim Beam column:Cost cutting hard on seniors

Crime

Gunman who killed 23 in racist attack at Texas Walmart offered plea deal to avoid death penalty

Local News

BREAKING: Armstrong takes over reins

Local News

Cassidy: Texting chain error will be used ‘as a learning experience’

Local News

Wade now leader of the Pack

Crime

3/25: Calcasieu Parish Sheriff announces arrest list

Local News

Trump officials texted attack plans to a group chat in a secure app that included a journalist

Crime

Man who entered Jennings High, fired shots sentenced to 20 years

Business

Hyundai plans $5.8B steel plant in Louisiana

Local News

Supreme Court seems divided over Louisiana case of congressional map with 2 Black majority seats

Local News

State superintendent tours Prien Lake Elementary, praises progress being made

Local News

From foe to friend: Guzzardo becomes new McNeese women’s basketball coach

Local News

Severe storms leave trail of toppled trees, debris, power outages

Local News

UPDATE: Community meeting on C02 projects canceled

Local News

Wade’s exit no reason for panic

Crime

UPDATE: Man wounded in officer-involved shooting put gun to woman’s head

Local News

Calcasieu Sheriff’s deputies involved in overnight shooting

Local News

Trump administration asks Supreme Court to halt judge’s order to rehire probationary federal workers

Local News

Longhorns stymie LSU to claim weekend series

Crime

Deputy fatally struck by fleeing vehicle while putting out spike strips

Local News

NC State officially announces hiring of Wade as new Wolfpack coach

life

SW La. school lunch menus March 24-28

life

Gratitude in Guatemala: Seeing beauty beyond the poverty

Business

Names in the News: People shaping the future of Lake Area business