On Monday, the McCracken County Lady Mustangs hosted crosstown and district rival Paducah Tilghman at Strawberry Hills Pharmacy Arena. The Lady Mustangs swept the Lady Blue Tornado in three sets with a 25-7, 25-5, 25-13 finish to keep the programs’ dominance across the district early into the fall season.
“It was a good district win [tonight] on our home court,” McCracken County head coach Chancie Coleman said. “We need to continue to find our rhythm ahead of this weekend with the opponents we’ll be facing in Elizabethtown.”
The middle school volleyball teams were announced before the varsity contest between the Lady Mustangs (2-0) and Paducah Tilghman (0-7), introducing the sixth-grade, seventh-grade, and eighth-grade teams. Additionally, the program honored senior Addison Hart for her accolades ahead of the competition—most career kills (1,280) and most kills (480) in a single season.
In the first set, McCracken County quickly pushed ahead of the ladies in blue and white, thanks to perfect setups by Taylor Dugan and a dominant offense courtesy of Hart and fellow senior Elizabeth Gilbert. With McCracken County leading 13-5, Paducah Tilghman called for a timeout to regroup, hoping to break up the Lady Mustangs’ momentum. Despite Paducah Tilghman fighting back, the Lady Blue Tornado could not overcome their opponent’s tactics, falling 25-7 in the set.
The Lady Mustangs continued to control the court in the second set, jumping out to an early extensive lead. Much like the first set, Tilghman called timeout as McCracken County led 16-4. Kills from Hart and Gilbert continued to find perfect placement on Tilghman’s side of the court, the small gaps between athletes in position. Tilghman added one more point to the scoreboard while the Lady Mustangs caught fire and pushed the second set out of reach, claiming it 25-5.
Paducah Tilghman fought back in the third set, answering McCracken County’s powerful offense and cutting away from the Lady Mustangs’ lead inch by inch. At the same time, the ladies in crimson found themselves with minuscule mishaps, such as overpowered kills and serves, landing right outside the court. However, McCracken County found its rhythm, leading 22-12 as Tilghman took a timeout. The Blue Tornado claimed one more point on the scoreboard, but ultimately, the Lady Mustangs claimed the 25-13 set for the sweep.
UP NEXT: The McCracken County Lady Mustangs will travel to Elizabethtown on Saturday to face Boyle County and Henry Clay and host E-Town. Paducah Tilghman will host Fulton County at Otis Dining Gymnasium on Tuesday evening.