Decatur sweeps Argyle

Despite a rocky third set, the Decatur Lady Eagles broke out the brooms against the Argyle Lady Eagles Tuesday.

Decatur swept Argyle for the second time in District 7-4A, 25-18, 25-20, 26-24.

Sitting atop the league standings at 9-0, Decatur (28-7) now has its sights set on back-to-back unblemished runs to the district title.

“We didn’t play our best, but we came out with a win. It’s always a relief to get past Argyle,” said Decatur coach Catherine Foerster. “We’re doing a lot of great things right now. We’ve definitely started to progress to a higher level.”

Dakota Hartman came out on fire for Decatur in the first set, knocking down three straight kills to give the Lady Eagles an early lead.

Argyle finally broke through, using a 5-1 run to pull within striking distance and force Foerster to stop play.

Hartman hammered another kill into the court out of the break. Kaylee Peterson followed her lead shortly after to allow Decatur to close the first frame.

Hartman recorded 12 kills, along with seven digs. Peterson led Decatur with 13 kills. She also had five digs and two blocks.

“We came out, and we were playing to have fun,” Hartman said. “We have a problem with our energy and tend to sink down at times. But we are getting better at focusing and just going hard.”

In the second set, Argyle dug its way into a deep hole quickly. Decatur put the home team at an 8-2 disadvantage out of the gates. Peterson’s back-to-back kills extended Decatur’s lead to double digits.

The Lady Eagles were poised to run away with the middle frame after a big save by Meredith Shults ended in a Jentry Lamirand kill. But Argyle responded with a 9-1 tear to pull within two.

Hartman put a stop to Argyle’s run with a powerful attack. Peterson was big at the net defensively, recording blocks on the final two plays of the set.

“It was really refreshing to get in there and finish it,” Peterson said. “After all our hard work in the first two sets, it feels good to be able to finish it all out and be done with it.”

Lamirand kicked off the final set swinging with a pair of kills for Decatur. Freshman Gracie Trulson followed suit with three kills.

Despite Decatur’s attack, Argyle did not go down easy. The two teams stayed locked in a power battle, with Argyle leading for the majority of the set.

A block and a kill from Lamirand allowed Decatur to regain the lead, but Argyle rattled off three straight scores to take a 21-20 lead.

Hartman and Peterson once again teamed up in crunch time to give Decatur an edge. Hartman tied the game at 23 with two consecutive kills. Peterson’s late swings produced a 3-0 run, allowing Decatur to claim the sweep.

Decatur will return to the court for a 7-4A match at Springtown 5 p.m. Friday.