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The Rice Lady Raiders volleyball season has come to an end but not without laying some foundation down for the future.
The Lady Raiders lost to the Edna Cowboys on the road on Tuesday, Oct. 24, in three straight sets to close out their season but with a lot of young players aiming to return next season the Lady Raiders are excited about the future of their program.
The match started with the Lady Raiders taking the game to the Cowboys on their home court. They applied early pressure to the Cowboys and caught them a little flat footed.
The Lady Raiders were right there in the match for the majority of the first set being neck and neck with the potent Cowboys offense in the first set. The Lady Raiders found themselves tied 1313 with the Cowboys late in the first set but a familiar foe reared its ugly head for the Lady Raiders.
Errors began piling up in the first set for the Lady Raiders allowing the Cowboys to widen the gap on the scoreboard. The Cowboys picked up the win in the first set by a score of 25-13 but the Lady Raiders were not done yet.
The Lady Raiders cleaned up the errors in the second set and had one of their best showings of the season. The Cowboys defense had no answer for the Lady Raiders offense in the second set and it came down to the wire.
Scratching and clawing their way to try and close out the set the Lady Raiders executed their systems to perfection in the second set. Unfortunately, the Cowboys defense made just enough plays at the net to close out the set 25-21.
Heading into the third and final set of the match and the season the Lady Raiders left it all out on the court. They stayed aggressive and again took the game to the Cowboys but ended up falling just short and lost the third set 25-18 ending their season.
The season may not have turned out the way the Lady Raiders expected it to but with a team loaded with sophomore’s and junior’s eager to get back on the court next season things are looking up for their program.
The Lady Raiders showed that they have a ton of talent throughout the season but were lacking in experience at the varsity level. With plenty of experience under their belt after this season the Lady Raiders have a great foundation to build on moving forward.
