The Hi-Plains Patriots will face off against the North Park Wildcats at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Hi-Plains has three straight wins, North Park has six straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the court.
Hi-Plains had to skate by with only a one-set margin when they last took the court, which might have inspired the three-set drubbing they dealt Lone Star on Friday. The Patriots put the hurt on the Longhorns with a sharp 3-0 victory. The Patriots not only won on Friday, but they posted their biggest win since September 27th (when they won 3-0).
Hi-Plains never let Lone Star on the board, but things got pretty close in the second set. The match finished with set scores of 25-20, 25-22, 25-20.
The home team had come away the winner the last four times North Park and Hayden had met, but sadly for the fans who attended this one that wasn't the case. The Wildcats took a 3-1 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Tigers on Saturday. While the Wildcats didn't get the win, they did start the game off strong, beating the Tigers 25-16 in the first set.
North Park started the match hot and won the first set, but they struggled down the stretch and lost the last three. Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 16-25, 27-25, 25-17, 25-23.
Hi-Plains will have to contain Jacie Schneider as she made an impact in North Park's last game. She had 13 digs, six kills, two blocks, and two aces. Another player making a difference was Aubrey Baugh, who had 12 digs.
North Park's defeat dropped their record down to 3-18. As for Hi-Plains, their win bumped their record up to 15-5.
Hi-Plains took their victory against North Park when the teams last played back in October of 2024 by a conclusive 3-0 score. Will the Patriots repeat their success, or do the Wildcats have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
