Murphy – Franklin took little time to dispatch the Lady Bulldogs in a volleyball match Monday, as the Lady Panthers won the match in three sets.
Franklin (12-1) jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first set before Murphy (5-4) could manage a point. Murphy did make a run and closed the lead to 5-3.
Franklin’s tall front line was too much for the Lady Dogs, as they were stingy letting the ball come across their net, as they built a 10-5 lead. The Lady Dogs would not go quietly, as they again closed the lead to 10-8.
Franklin made another run to extend its lead to 17-10 when Cayla Greer stopped the run with a block at the net to stop the run, but Murphy could close the gap no closer than five points. The Lady Panthers built a 23-15 lead before closing out the set to win 25-15.
The Lady Dogs would jump out to a 4-1 lead in the second set and held the lead at 7-4, but that was short-lived as the Lady Panthers would outscore the Lady Dogs 13-1 to build a 17-9 lead. The Lady Dogs could get no closer than eight. Franklin would outscore Murphy 8-2 to in the last half of the set to take a 25-11 win.
The third set didn’t get any better for the Lady Dogs, despite putting up a good fight. Murphy kept the match close for a short time as they exchanged scores with the Lady Panthers early.
Franklin’s front line of hitters took over and extended the Lady Panthers’ lead to 15-4 before Murphy could manage a point. Murphy would hold serve three more points before Franklin broke serve.
The Lady Dogs had closed the lead to 16-8, but would get no closer. Franklin went on to win the third set 25-11 to take the match 3-0.
Murphy would manage only 12 kills during the match, while committing 17 attempt errors. Geer led the team in digs with 11, while Carsyn Lovingood had 10. Geer also led the team with five assists. Wyndsor Caldwell led the team with two aces from the service line.
The Lady Dogs will attempt get back on the winning track as they travel to Cherokee on Thursday to take on the Lady Braves. The Lady Dogs return home at 6 p.m. Monday to face Highlands, then host Hayesville at 6 p.m. Tuesday.