Lady Panthers rally from 0-2 deficit to outlast Lady Lynx in five-set thriller 

Cross-county connections make meetings between the Lincoln County High School Lynx and the Pahranagat Valley High School Panthers a tad more meaningful than other non-league contests. 

In girls volleyball, both programs look forward to the annual clash because it helps them prepare for their respective league seasons. Lady Lynx team captains—seniors Gabriella Holt and Brylie Somers—emphasized that perspective. 

“I’ve always just tried to reassure the girls that it’s just another game,” Holt said. 

Somers added, “For me, it really does not [mean anything extra] just because they’re not in our league or anything.” 

The Lady Panthers agree. 

“I think it’s been like this big town rival thing forever, and I feel like it’s still that, but it’s not as big as it used to be,” PVHS senior Rylee Lewis said. 

Maybe it’s not as heated as it was back in the 20th century, but the matchup still produces nail-biters. Pahranagat Valley clawed its way out of a 0-2 hole to force a fifth set and held on for a 3-2 win in front of a raucous LCHS student section and spirited fans at Rick Phillips Gym on Tuesday, Sept. 15, in Panaca.

In the last frame, the Lady Lynx took an 8-3 lead. Then Panther freshman Ella Pearson served a series of aces, and a Lewis tip dropped in to even the score. The crowd’s energy rose as the teams traded points. Lincoln junior LeAnne Katschke blocked a kill attempt by sophomore Lia Rowley to tie the set at 10. Then a block by Pahranagat sophomore Kayda Walch and a Lewis off-balance shot gave the Lady Panthers an 11-10 lead. A Rowley kill put PVHS up 14-12, but a service error gave the ball back to the Lady Lynx. Pahrangat Valley corralled the subsequent Lincoln serve and knocked in the final point to close the set, 15-13.

The Lynx cruised early, led by outside hitter Holt, who showed why she’s planning on playing at the next level. She contributed through her attacks, serves and defense to help her team win the first set, 25-15, and the second, 25-12. 

“Gabby on the other side is amazing,” Panther head coach Milly Walch said.

The Lady Panthers made several adjustments heading into the third set, hoping to find an answer.

“I had to make a couple changes to the lineup for us to get the setters in the right position because [they] were having to run like crazy,” the coach said.

Lewis and Pearson began feeding hitters Rowley and senior Allie Lasike. The Panthers took an 18-10 lead, but the Lady Lynx fought back to tie the set at 20. The Panthers retook the lead and closed the set, 25-22, with constant hustle and some fortunate bounces.

Lincoln head coach Chantel Holt said it was challenging to establish momentum after dropping the third set. “The second you let a team in who wants to win, then all of a sudden you give them hope,” she said. “And hope can be a dangerous thing.”

In the fourth set, the Lady Lynx took an 8-4 lead behind a string of aces from junior Jaitin Cole. Coach Walch called a timeout with her team down 14-19, and the Lady Panthers rallied. A Rowley kill, assisted by Lewis, gave Pahranagat Valley a 21-20 lead. The team forced the fifth set on a soft shot that Allie Lasike guided over Lincoln’s front row for the 25-22 win.

Lewis then came into the Panther huddle and yelled, “Fifteen more!”

Walch commended her group’s competitiveness and was happy to see the team finish more plays as the match moved along, with Rowley’s confidence on the attack growing in the final three sets.

“She really changed the game for us in the third set,” Walch said.

Rowley finished with 12 kills, and Lasike had 10. Pearson had 12 assists and five aces, and Lewis had 10 assists, 11 digs and five aces. Sophomore libero Reagan Shumway had 28 good passes and 22 digs.

Holt led the way for the Lynx with 13 kills, five aces and three blocks. Somers had five kills and five aces and Donohue had five aces and three kills (stats were still being confirmed at press time). Senior Libero Lakyla Kulani was a steadying force throughout the match for the Lady Lynx.

It will be another year before the programs meet up again, but this match will give everyone plenty to talk about in the meantime. Both teams wished each other well as they head further into league play. 

“They’re gonna do great,” Coach Walch said. “They have some good double blocks and some good hitters.”

Coach Holt complimented the Lady Panthers’ ability to cover the floor.

“What they don’t have in hitters, they make up in coverage and movement,” she said.

For both teams, the contest did what it was supposed to: help each other get better through intense, friendly competition.

The Lady Lynx head to a league doubleheader at Founders Classical Academy in Las Vegas on Friday, Sept. 18. They then host White Pine on Tuesday, the 22nd. The Lady Panthers travel to White Pine on the 18th and then host league foe Beaver Dam for Homecoming on Friday, the 25th.