Lady Broncos advance to RPAC tournament semifinals

    The Wauneta-Palisade volleyball team opened its RPAC tournament appearance Monday night with wins over Maxwell and Hitchcock County.
    As the third seed, WP swept sixth seeded Maxwell (6-22) in the first round.
    The Broncos shook off a 9-12 deficit in the first set and rattled off eight points with Halle Bardsley serving. WP won the set 25-19.
    Izabelle Stehno led a six-point run to give WP an early 11-3 lead in the second set. Peyton Cox finished off Maxwell with five straight points in the 25-15 win.
    WP ended the match with a 25-18 win. The Broncos were able to hold serve all but three times in the set.
    Hitchcock County (16-14) was the second seed and hosted the opening rounds.
    WP shook off a one-point deficit in the first set to take a 10-5 lead. The Falcons bounced back and tied the set at 15.
    Tied at 19, GraCee Goings strung together a four-point run that put WP on the brink of the win. Cali Cox finished off serving in the 25-22 win.
    The second set was just as close. At 18-17 in the set, P. Cox and Goings served WP to match point, 24-18, before the Broncos took the set 25-22.
    The Falcons strong close to the second set was a sign of things to come. Hitchcock County controlled the third set and WP lost 14-25.
    The Broncos returned the favor and then some in the fourth set.
    Hitchcock County only held serve once in the set. Bardsley led a seven-point run that put WP firmly in control, 19-7. Sandman finished off the match, adding two aces in a five-point run to give WP a 25-8 win.
    WP faced Maywood/Hayes Center, the top see in the West Division, in the RPAC semifinals Tuesday in McCook with a berth in the championship game going to the winner.
    It’s the Broncos’ third-straight year reaching the semifinals.
Two five-set matches
    The Broncos hosted Medicine Valley Oct. 12.
    WP fell in the first set 20-25.
    The Broncos trailed 8-15 through the first rotation. Sandman served WP to within four points, 14-18, but the Broncos couldn’t close the gap.
    The Broncos bounced back with a 25-23 win in the second set, thanks in part to a better start. WP led 13-9 but found itself trailing after a six-point scoring spree by MV. Sandman put the Broncos back in control, 18-15, and WP held off the Raiders for the rest of the set.
    The tide swung back in the Raiders favor in the third set. WP lost the high-scoring set 28-30. The Broncos had four set points and MV three before the Raiders won it.
    WP forced a deciding fifth set with a 25-20 win in set four. The score stayed within a couple points up to a 15-14 WP lead. C. Cox and Goings were able to string together multiple serves to give the Broncos the space they needed in the win.
    The Broncos took the match with a 15-9 win in the fifth.
    P. Cox led WP with 22 kills. Also finishing in double figures were C. Cox and Sandman with 15 and 11 kills, respectively.
    The Broncos had 21 aces in the match, including eight by Sandman, six by C. Cox and five by Stehno.
    Friday, WP took a second five set match, this one at Wallace.
    The Broncos dominated set one, winning 25-12. WP trailed by one, 7-8, before C. Cox served five straight. Bardsley increased the lead even more to 22-9.
    WP fell in the second set 22-25. WP led by as many as five points, but Wallace grabbed the momentum and tied the set at 17 late in the set before taking the win.
    WP came back out on top in the third set 25-21. The Broncos shook off an 8-8 tie and never looked back.
    The Wildcats extended the match in the fourth set, a 16-25 Bronco loss. A nine-point run by Wallace doomed the Broncos.
    It took extra points to decide the match’s winner. WP took the match with a 19-17 win. WP held a 12-9 lead, but soon found themselves facing match point, 12-14. WP had two match points before taking the win.
    WP Head Coach Katie Lawless said she thought the girls handled both five-set matches pretty well.
    “It’s always nice to come out on top of those and we haven’t lost a  five setter yet which says a lot about the grit and determination of this team,” Lawless said.

Up next
    Friday the Broncos will travel to Cambridge to take on Axtell (17-10) to end the regular season.
    Lawless said the match is a great opportunity to play a good team at a neutral site for a game that has a sub-state type of feel.
    The Broncos currently lead their subdistrict and should host Paxton, Wallace and Dundy County Stratton Monday and Tuesday.
    District finals will be Saturday, Oct. 30, between the 12 subdistrict winners and the four highest seeds that didn’t win their subdistrict.

Class D2 point standings:
1. Falls City Sacred Heart (26-2), 46.7143
2. Stuart (22-3), 45.9600
3. Humphrey St. Francis (17-5), 45.6364
4. Maywood-Hayes Center (20-2), 45.2727
5. Diller-Odell (20-7), 44.6667
6. Wynot (15-9), 43.8750
7. Anselmo-Merna (19-8), 43.7778
8. South Platte (20-6), 43.6154
9. Bertrand (15-8), 43.5652
10. Garden County (24-6), 43.4000
14. Wauneta-Palisade (12-10), 42.6818
30. Paxton (11-14), 40.1200
31. Wallace (9-11), 40.0500
51. Dundy County Stratton (0-25), 37.2800