MESQUITE, Texas-Pleasant Grove fought hard but was eliminated from playoff contention Friday night in the opener of the Region II-4A volleyball tournament, swept by Argyle 25-12, 25-22, 25-17 at Mesquite Poteet High School.
"I am so proud of them," Hawks' Coach Amy Collvins said. "They kept fighting till the very end of the last point."
The Lady Hawks (28-13) entered the contest after sweeping Rusk 33-31, 27-25, 27-25.
Seniors Madeline Haak and Britton Anderson took lead for the Hawks swatting six kills apiece; Macy Adams and Natalie Hale added four each of their own.
Costly errors committed by Pleasant Grove gave Argyle the momentum needed to put the Hawks away. PG averaged over 10 errors per game.
"We came out a little flat, where we haven't been in the playoffs," Coach Collins said. "We tried to gather it up. We kind of had an emotional rollercoster there and we just couldn't maintain any speed or steam. We fought hard, but we had those lag moments that you just can't have at this point.
Sophie Betzhold led Argyle with six kills and a solitary tip. Mariah Hesslegesser, a frontline for the Lady Eagles, contributed two Ks and four blocks, and Paxton McGlinch added four Ks of her own.
In the first set, Pleasant Grove kept went down early reaching 8-4 before calling a timeout. The Hawks continued to rally staying within four until Allie Jones severe seven straight for Arglye to make it 20-11. A few errors and two hits by McGlinch later the first of three was over.
The Hawks took the first three points of the second set, served by Kaylee Kelly.
Betzhold knotted things up at four with three straight serves of her own. After only giving up two points to Pleasant Grove, Jones took to the service line once more and delivered on 10 consecutive points, six of which the Hawks gave away on errors; 14-6 Argyle.
Pleasant Grove responded with two strings of points. Anderson started the first, serving all four points; she opened with an assist by fellow senior Allison Michaelis and closed it with an Ace. The second string of points brought the trailing Hawks to even at 17 and then one further to 18-17 for the first lead since the opening of the second match. The Eagles went on a 7-5 run to win the second set.
In the final set Pleasant Grove only led once, 2-1, but were within one for its first 11 serves. It was when the Hawks were down by two 14-12 that Davis went on a serving spree for 8 straight points, forcing seven crucial errors and earning one point on a block by Hesslegesser.
Pleasant Grove got support from Kaylee Kelly with seven digs and 16 assists, Sydney Hopkins with 12 digs, and Hale with two blocks.
"It's such good experience for them to be here, to feel this atmosphere, because next year they're going to be hungry for it," Coach Collins said, speaking about her seven returning juniors.
Argyle plays Krum or Carthage back at Mesquite on Saturday in the Regional finals, with the championship match set for 1 p.m.