The Overton Eagles will challenge the Southwest Roughriders at 1:00 p.m. on Thursday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Overton took a loss when they played away from home last Tuesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Saturday. They put the hurt on Wauneta-Palisade with a sharp 3-0 win.
Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 25-21, 25-13, 25-15.
Meanwhile, Southwest came tearing into Saturday's matchup with three straight wins , and they left with even more momentum. They blew past the Wolfpack 3-0.
While Southwest might've won, it sure wasn't easy: Elgin/Pope John scored at least 19 points in every set they played. The final score came out to 25-22, 25-22, 25-19.
Southwest's win came from a few key players Overton will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Bellamie Stritt, who had nine digs and two aces. Caitlyn Adams also deserves some recognition as she had her first block of the season.
Southwest's victory bumped their record up to 28-5. As for Overton, their win bumped their record up to 26-5.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Thursday's contest: Overton has really dialed in their serving this season, having averaged 7.5 aces per game. However, it's not like Southwest struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 5.2 aces. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Overton was able to grind out a solid victory over Southwest when the teams last played back in October, winning 2-0. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Eagles since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
