The Dublin Lady Lions entered round two of district play last week following a home battle with Early Tuesday, Sept. 29.
“The Lady Lions have been battling hard, putting in the reps, and learning to grow together as ONE team,” said head Dublin volleyball coach Hannah Smith, who is optimistic about the rest of the season’s games as they face the same opponents from the first round of district and know what to expect from them.
Smith said her group is “determined to make a difference” and “competing with energy, discipline and pride.”
“Every Lady Lion has been putting in the work,” added Smith. “The first round prepared us — now it’s time to grow, compete, and make our mark in the second half of district play.”
The team’s current record stands at 7-16 overall, 1-7 in district, with many close contests and valuable lessons learned along the way.
The Sept. 29 match-up ended in a 0-3 loss for Dublin but the Lady Lions put up 13, 13 and 16 in the sets.
In the October 3 game at Tolar, Dublin put up 6, 17 and 13 against the Lady Rattlers’ 25s.
“We went into the match against Tolar with the goal of improving from our last meeting, and we definitely did that,” Smith said. “The girls competed well, pushed ahead at times, and scored higher against them. We’re focused on growth and consistency, and each game in this second round is showing the progress we’ve been working toward.”
Smith called out the performance of her athletes from the first round of district, sharing the following observations: Ingrid Hernandez – Defensive anchor, averaging 11 digs per match, constantly keeping us alive in rallies.
Derby Kukla – Steady presence with a 92% serve rating and efficient swings at the net.
Sandra Vasquez – Consistent ball control with 7 digs per match and sharp serve-receive work.
Emma Mitchell – Hustler in the back row with 47 serve-receive attempts per match, one of our top passers.
Bayli Jackson – Brings firepower at the net with 2–3 kills per match, sparking momentum when we need it most.
Olivia Salyer – Smart attacker, averaging 3 kills per match while balancing our offense.
Regan Vanbebber – Tough at the service line with 1 ace per match, plus more than 2 kills per match.
Adriana Stewart – Reliable utility player with 10+ attacks per match, steady under pressure.
Addisen Zimmerman – Brings defensive energy with 4+ digs per match, a spark plug in rallies.
Samantha Martinez – Strong in serve-receive with 8+ attempts per match and steady defensive presence.
Yasmin Esparza – Outstanding consistency with a 100% serving percentage and solid passing numbers.