New Boston, Liberty-Eylau come down to the wire

The volleyball match between New Boston and host Liberty-Eylau came down to the wire.
The Lady Leopards were just two points from the loss but snatched victory out of the jaws of defeat with a 5-point rally to end the fifth set and secure a 13-25, 25-16, 25-23, 21-25, 15-13 victory Friday at the Rader Dome.
Amoyia Gentry swatted 15 kills and had five blocks for Liberty-Eylau, and Keeley Norris chipped in with 10 blocks and seven kills.
L-E built a commanding 8-2 lead in the decisive set, but the Lady Lions scored 4 of 5 and then went on a 7-0 streak to go up 13-10. After a sideout, Taylor Crabtree served four consecutive winners to complete the comeback for the Leopards.
"Our motto is 'No excuses,' and I think the girls really embodied the slogan from Tuesday to tonight," Liberty-Eylau coach LaTasha Harris said. "When everything was down, they handled business, they communicated and they worked as a team. I'm excited to see where we're going after today."
Morgan McAlexander led New Boston with 16 kills, and McKenzee Thomas added eight.
New Boston started the first set with a 5-0 run, added another 5-point rally to go ahead 17-7 and ended the set with a 7-point barrage.
The second set was nip-and-tuck until Kaliyah Thompson served 7 of her 9 to take a 17-16 lead and knot the match.
In the third set, Kyana Norman's 4-point serving run erased a 19-15 deficit for L-E, and after the Lions tied the set at 23, the home team scored the next two to go ahead.
After falling behind 4-0 quickly in the fourth set, New Boston chipped away at the lead, cutting it to 7-5 and took leads of 9-8, 11-10 and 15-12. L-E rallied to trail by one (20-19), but the Lions scored 5 of 7 to force the fifth set.
"We're a young, growing team," Lions coach Haylee Houston said. "We're still building, and we've got a lot of potential."
Norman served 10 points for the Leopards, and Derrica Henderson and Crabtree added eight apiece to go along with Thompson's nine. Henderson also had 10 blocks, Crabtree added 20 digs, Daycoria Meadows had seven kills and five blocks, Norman contributed six blocks, and Kelly Cigainero had 20 assists.
Grace Duffer had 17 service points, Carlee Ratcliff served 13 winners, and Hannah Ratcliff had 11.
New Boston won the junior varsity match, 25-18, 25-21. Kayla Norris led L-E with five points.

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