Ephrata sets Connell aside

With win, Lady Tigers advance in CWAC 2A districts

Ephrata dispensed with Connell — once they realized it was OK to score.

In the fourth game, the Lady Tigers mistake-laden start put them behind 6-11 when head coach Kim Crown called a timeout to remind her team of one important thing.

"I told them, 'It's OK to score,'" Crown said. "I told them, 'You need to play your game. They're just getting dinky points. You're doing it to yourselves, they're not doing it to you.'"

It was a helpful reminder, because the Lady Tigers' outside-hitter Laura Tinnell responded with two kills and a stuff to draw Ephrata close.

When Connell pulled back ahead 13-18, it was Emily Lewellyn and Britney Ratigan who erased the lead with scores.

"Sometimes it's good to regroup," Crown said. "And sometimes that has to come off the court."

The timeout gave them perspective. The game gave them the match. The Lady Tigers topped Connell in four games in the first round of the CWAC 2A district tournament Thursday night in Ephrata.

Despite the win, Ephrata survived a scare. Crown said her team expected to victory and came out a little flat.

"We played them early in the year so I thought we should beat them," she said. "But we came out a little overconfident and we didn't really play like we liked to play. It was pretty inconsistent."

Ephrata's inconsistency gave Connell the 25-22 win in game one, but the Lady Tigers ratcheted it up to take game two.

Game three showcased the fight both teams had. Ephrata and Connell players flopped to the floor, making miraculous saves to extend several rallies well longer than a minute. The see-saw battle took extra points to decide.

Tied 27-27, Ephrata's Kellee Neal hit the deck to dig a sharp Connell kill attempt. She was able to scoop the ball, but it kicked sideways toward the stands. Chelsea Conklin then threw an arm out to knock the ball back in play. The rally continued, ending with Tinnell notching one of her 15 kills. Ephrata went on to win the game.

The point exemplified Ephrata's night, highlighted with circus saves.

"I think we're getting scrappier as the year goes on.," Crown said. "They just want to win, so they are going to get to the floor. They know they need to do it for the team."

Crown did address the inconsistency her team showed at times during the match, and said there were other things her team needs to work on to advance in the tournament.

"Less unforced errors," she said. "A lot of the time the errors were ones we put upon ourselves, not what the other team did to us."

Britney Ratigan had nine kills and four aces for the Lady Tigers. Kellee Neal was 14 of 15 serving and added eight kills.

With the win, Ephrata improves to 12-3 overall. The Lady Tigers play the winner of Grandview (13-1) and Cascade (7-6) at noon on Saturday in Ephrata.