Lady Cards are Bi-District Champs

The Columbus Lady Cardinals start their playoff journey off with a bang by capturing the Bi-District Championship Monday night.

The Lady Cardinals traveled to Schulenburg High School and defeated the Great Heart Northern Oaks Griffins in three straight sets to win the Bi-District Championship.

With every game being a must-win for the Lady Cardinals they started Monday’s playoff matchup with a level of intensity befitting a playoff game. The Lady Cardinals wasted no time building an early lead while their defense shut down the net.

The Lady Cardinals completely controlled the pace of the first set beating the Griffins 25-5 to set the tone for the match. Taylor Morrow, Ally Tribe and Ember Mandola led the Cardinals offensive attack Monday night combining for 38 total attacks.

The trio also combined for 24 kills in their firstround playoff matchup showing off how good their offense is. They were aided by Sage Thomas who racked up 24 assists in the matchup as well as strong defense that kept the point alive and kept the offense in a rhythm.

Defensively it was a full team effort from the Lady Cards because they recorded 33 digs as a team. Morrow, Tribe, Thomas, Sophia Wolters and Caylie Neisner recorded four or more digs in the playoff match adding to the growing confidence of the Lady Cards.

The trio of attackers for the Lady Cardinals overwhelmed the Griffins’s defense which helped them build large leads early during sets. The second set was much like the first where the Lady Cards offense buzzed around while the defense shut down any opportunity the Griffins had.

The Lady Cards closed out the second set with a score of 25-7 to put themselves up two sets to zero. Being one set away from being crowned Bi-District Champions, the Lady Cards continued to overwhelm the Griffins’ defense.

As the set came to a close the Lady Cards defense held the Griffins below 10 points for the third time in as many sets. The Lady Cards scored the final point to end the set 25-7 and they hoisted the Bi-District Championship.

The Lady Cards now set their sights on the Area round playoff game on Thursday, Nov. 2, against Hondo at Nixon-Smiley High School at 6:30 p.m.