Haxtun Lady Bulldogs add two sweeps; boast 18-3 overall record

The Lady Bulldogs boast an overall 18-3 record with two sweeps under their belt over the past week. The team heads into the final week of regular season action with a contest against Akron on Friday before post season play begins. Haxtun took down Otis at home Thursday night and just two days later swept Wiley in a highly-anticipated, top-five Colorado match up.

Otis came to Haxtun on Thursday night to face off with the home team Lady Bulldogs in the annual Pink Out match up. Proceeds from events throughout the night benefit the Haxtun Cancer Assistance Fund. Before the match, the Lady Bulldogs paid special tribute to Dr. Breck McCarty, who just the day before, passed away following a long battle with breast cancer.

Following the tribute to Haxtun's former doctor, the Lady Bulldogs went onto sweep Otis, 25-18, 25-17, and 25-21. The win gives Haxtun another 1A win to their already impressive record.

Two Lady Bulldogs earned double-digits in the hitting column against Otis. Seniors Allie Thompson and Taylor Schram combined for a total of 22 kills in the three-set win. Thompson put down 12 of 30 kill attempts while Schram added 10 kills from 23 attempts. Cassidy Goddard registered seven kills followed by Megan Walker, Bobbi Starkebaum and Ella Coffin, each with three. Schram and Goddard each tallied one solo block in the contest.

The Schram/Goddard duo led Haxtun from behind the service line, each registering five aces. K'lyn Bornhoft and Thompson each added two serving aces. As a team, the Lady Bulldogs served 78.1 percent in the contest.

Bornhoft, who serves as the Lady Bulldog back row specialist, tallied 10 digs on defense and 21 passes on serve receive. Walker added 10 passes from the back row on serve receive.

Schram, in one of her final outings on her home court, registered 15 assists followed by Thompson with 12.

On Saturday, Haxtun hosted the Wiley Lady Panthers for a late-morning match-up of two top-five ranked teams in both Colorado High School Activities Association standings and in RPI rankings. Haxtun took the three-set win, 25-19, 25-13 and 25-16.

Following the win, CHSAA polls listed Haxtun as the number four team in all of Colorado 1A volleyball action. Briggsdale currently holds the top spot followed by number two Fleming and third ranked Merino. Wiley rounds out the top five. RPI rankings also gives Haxtun a fourth place seed in 1A action.

Senior hitters Thompson and Schram led at the net Saturday with a combined 32 kills. Schram led the Lady Bulldogs with 17 kills from 31 attempts for a .453 hitting percentage. Thompson landed 15 kills out of 35 attempts for a .343 hitting percentage in the three-set win. Goddard registered six kills followed by Walker with five and Starkebaum with three. On defense, Thompson led at the net with two solo blocks. Goddard and Walker each tallied one solo block at the net.

Thompson went 100 percent from behind the serving line. She sent over 18 serves in the contest. Schram registered two aces followed by Bornhoft and Goddard, each with one ace.

As setters, Thompson and Schram totaled 33 of the team's 43 assists to Lady Bulldog hitters. Thompson tallied 17 followed by Schram with 16.

Defensively, Schram tallied 21 digs in the back row, the team high. Coffin registered 12 digs while Thompson added 11. On serve receive, Coffin had 31 successful passes to lead her team.

This week the Lady Bulldogs are set to travel to Akron to take on the 8-9 Lady Rams in the final regular season contest. According to MaxPreps, Akron enters the contest following a recent loss to Holyoke but a win over Lone Star just before that.

Game time in Akron is set for 4 p.m.