The Benton Lady Tigers clinched a share of the District 1-I championship with a three sets to nonr victory over the Airline Lady Vikings Friday night at Benton.
Benton improved 24-4 overall and 6-0 in district. The Lady Tigers lead second-place Natchitoches Central (20-5, 4-1) and defending champion Byrd (10-23, 4-1) by one-and-a-half games.
Benton closes district play Tuesday at Haughton. The Lady Tigers, who finished runner-up to Byrd last year, have lost only one set in district play.
Airline dropped to 9-19 overall and 4-2 in district.
Benton is No. 5 in the Division I power rankings. The Lady Tigers will host a first-round playoff match for the third year in a row.
Benton won the first set 25-14. Leading 10-9, the Lady Tigers took control with a 5-0 run.
The second set was tied at 10. Benton won four straight points and extended the lead to 22-15. Airline rallied but the Lady Tigers closed the set 25-20 with a kill,
Benton won the first eight points of the third set and won it 25-15.
The Lady Tigers’ front line led by Layla Davidson and Madison Smith dominated, winning points with kills and blocks. Tenley Hesson and Julianne Phillips also contributed. Setter Arianna Barnes provided numerous assists.
Libero Emma Holmes made several good digs along with the rest of her teammates. Others contributing included Bryan Huffman, Shekinyah Njua, Devyn Moore, Lailee Magee, Carlie Wyatt and Andrea Wade.
In a non-district match Tuesday, Haughton defeated West Monroe 3-2 on the road. The Lady Bucs won the first set 25-19 and lost the second 26-24. The teams split the next two sets with Haughton winning the third 25-21 and West Monroe the fourth 25-19. The Lady Bucs took the fifth 15-8.
Haughton (16-5) is No. 30 in the Division I power rankings. The top 32 teams in the final rankings make the playoffs.
The match was Haughton’s second five-set match in as many days. The Lady Bucs fell to Byrd Tuesday.
Haughton dropped the first two sets 27-25 and 25-13. The Lady Bucs won the next two 27-25 and 25-14. The Lady Jackets won the fifth 15-9.
Bella Van had 14 kills, six blocks and six diggs. Ava Dickey had 13 kills, 11 digs and seven assists.
Aniyah Nicholson had 23 assists, 18 digs and four aces. Mikaela Poole had 31 digs and two aces. Hannah Strange had two aces and two kills. Tavy Norwood had two blocks.
In other District 1-I matches Tuesday, Benton defeated Captain Shreve 3-0, Parkway defeated Huntington 3-0 and Airline fell to Natchitoches Central 3-0.
In a District 1-II match, Bossier defeated Southwood 3-0.
In a District 1-IV match, Providence Classical Academy defeated Downsville 3-1.
PCA (13-6) is No. 13 in the Division V power rankings. The top 16 teams in the final rankings host first-round playoff matches.
PCA is in its third season as a member of the LHSAA, but this is the first year the Lady Knights have been eligible for the playoffs.
In a District 1-I match Monday, Haughton defeated Huntington 3-0. In a non-district match, Parkway fell to Loyola 3-0.
Note: Match individual statistics provided by coaches or their designees.