The Herald-Zeitung

AUSTIN — Smithson Valley coach Liana Gombert still couldn’t believe the season was over during the bus ride home on Tuesday.

The Rangers had momentum on their side heading into the fifth-set tiebreaker against Austin Bowie in the Class 5A Region IV bi-district playoffs after winning the marathon game four that saw both teams exerting a plethora of physical and emotional energy.

“Everything was clicking for us early in the match,” Gombert said. “We were down in game four and we battled back to win.

“(Game four) was a very emotional match with numerous long rallies and we dug deep to get that win.”

Austin Bowie (25-11) had just a little bit more left in the tank, as the Bulldogs won 22-25, 25-22, 25-17, 29-31, 15-11 to end Smithson Valley’s season (26-15) a bit too soon for Gombert.

“It doesn’t feel like it should be done,” said Gombert, when asked about the heartbreaking loss. “I don’t know if there is anything we would have done differently. Our players left it all on the court and fought hard for each other.

“This is one of the toughest regions in the state and I thought we played with a lot of heart. It was a hard-fought battle.”

Lauryn Lozano led the way for the Rangers with 14 kills and three aces, while Elizabeth Pawelek finished with 26 assists, three aces and Paige Hamilton had 38 digs.