Photo by Kevin Cox
Mustangs ready to take on the best
Published November 12, 2012
FRIENDSWOOD — The Friendswood volleyball team earned a berth to the state tournament Saturday. On Sunday, the Lady Mustangs found out who stands in their way of playing for the championship.
“It’s really just an incredible feeling,” Friendswood coach Kelly Beck said about reaching state. “Our hard work and long practices have finally paid off, and for these girls to get to go and experience what state is like, is just a dream come true.”
Friendswood (42-4) will face Aledo (40-5) in the Class 4A semifinals at 5 p.m. Thursday at the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland.
In the other semifinal match, Lucas Lovejoy (46-4) plays Cedar Park (40-7) at 7 p.m. Thursday.
The semifinal winners will meet back on the same court at 4:30 p.m. Saturday to play for the state championship.
“I think the seedings were perfect and exactly what we would have wanted,” Beck said. “We’ve known all season that it would come down to records as to who was seeded where. We are happy to have had a great season and only have four losses on our side. That made all the difference.”
The Class 4A final four includes some of the state’s elite programs, and all of the squads have at least 40 victories this season.
Lucas Lovejoy tops the Texas Girls Coaches Association Class 4A poll. Friendswood is ranked No. 2, Aledo is No. 3, and Cedar Park is No. 8.
Friendswood is the District 24 champion and beat Angleton, Ridge Point, Santa Fe, Magnolia and Barbers Hill in the playoffs.
Aledo won District 7 and downed Burleson Centennial, Denton, Byron Nelson, Amarillo and Dumas in the postseason.
The Lady Mustangs beat Aledo, 25-18, 23-25, 25-12, on Aug. 25 in the Byron Nelson Classic in Dallas.
“Aledo is a very good and very scrappy team,” Beck said. “We’ve had the luxury of playing them once already this season in a preseason tournament. While we won, it was still a highly contested match. They are a great team, and we are going to have to earn every single point.”
Friendswood will work out today and Tuesday before heading to Garland at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday with a special state tournament send-off at the high school.
“Our blocking and defense are the reasons we won the region,” Beck said. “We will continue to focus on those two areas in practice and improve our serve receive offense. If we can take care of business on our side, we are a hard team to beat.
“It’s important that (the players) don’t get caught up in all the hype. They have to remain even-keeled and focused on what’s in front of us. While this past weekend was very exciting, our jobs are not done. We have, hopefully, two hard games in front of us with teams that want it just as bad as we do, and we must execute.”
“It’s really just an incredible feeling,” Friendswood coach Kelly Beck said about reaching state. “Our hard work and long practices have finally paid off, and for these girls to get to go and experience what state is like, is just a dream come true.”
Friendswood (42-4) will face Aledo (40-5) in the Class 4A semifinals at 5 p.m. Thursday at the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland.
In the other semifinal match, Lucas Lovejoy (46-4) plays Cedar Park (40-7) at 7 p.m. Thursday.
The semifinal winners will meet back on the same court at 4:30 p.m. Saturday to play for the state championship.
“I think the seedings were perfect and exactly what we would have wanted,” Beck said. “We’ve known all season that it would come down to records as to who was seeded where. We are happy to have had a great season and only have four losses on our side. That made all the difference.”
The Class 4A final four includes some of the state’s elite programs, and all of the squads have at least 40 victories this season.
Lucas Lovejoy tops the Texas Girls Coaches Association Class 4A poll. Friendswood is ranked No. 2, Aledo is No. 3, and Cedar Park is No. 8.
Friendswood is the District 24 champion and beat Angleton, Ridge Point, Santa Fe, Magnolia and Barbers Hill in the playoffs.
Aledo won District 7 and downed Burleson Centennial, Denton, Byron Nelson, Amarillo and Dumas in the postseason.
The Lady Mustangs beat Aledo, 25-18, 23-25, 25-12, on Aug. 25 in the Byron Nelson Classic in Dallas.
“Aledo is a very good and very scrappy team,” Beck said. “We’ve had the luxury of playing them once already this season in a preseason tournament. While we won, it was still a highly contested match. They are a great team, and we are going to have to earn every single point.”
Friendswood will work out today and Tuesday before heading to Garland at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday with a special state tournament send-off at the high school.
“Our blocking and defense are the reasons we won the region,” Beck said. “We will continue to focus on those two areas in practice and improve our serve receive offense. If we can take care of business on our side, we are a hard team to beat.
“It’s important that (the players) don’t get caught up in all the hype. They have to remain even-keeled and focused on what’s in front of us. While this past weekend was very exciting, our jobs are not done. We have, hopefully, two hard games in front of us with teams that want it just as bad as we do, and we must execute.”
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