5 Set Thriller

Maddi Kriz slammed 20 kills and Kenzie Beckham had 28 assists as Westwood beat Round Rock in a five-set barn-burner, 25-15, 18-25, 25-22, 21-25, 15-9, Tuesday at Round Rock High School.

The road win in a match between two of the District 13-6A favorites gave the Warriors an early edge over their fierce rival in the race for a district title.

"It is huge anytime you can beat the Dragons at Round Rock; their fans are crazy supportive, and you really have to stay on focus," said Westwood coach Tara Nelson.

The Warriors (21-11, 2-0) jumped on Round Rock (25-6, 1-1) to start the match, building a double-digit lead and cruising to the first-set victory. Kriz and Audrey Quesnel, who finished with 11 kills, pounded the Dragons cross court.

"That first set was huge and really gave our girls a little confidence," Nelson said. "We got a great start in the second set, then Round Rock really loaded up and ran off a bunch of points."

Round Rock trailed 12-7 in the second set, then posted an 18-6 scoring run to even the match with a 25-18 win. The Dragons turned around their passing game in the set and showed effective ball control while trimming their unforced errors during their scoring run to just one.

Even at a set each, Round Rock stayed hot and led 15-10 in the third set before Maggie Stout (six kills), Kriz and Abby Gregorczyk had timely kills to key a Warrior rally. A huge double block from Stout and Quesnel capped a 15-7 run that gave Westwood a 25-22 victory.

The Dragons showed no quit and won the fourth set behind timely kills from Lauren Malone and Sarah Keilen.

But Westwood's steady defense proved the difference in the fifth and decisive set.

The win was special for the Warriors, who were forced to play without standout middle blocker Zoe Menendez, who injured her ankle in the Volleypalooza tournament and will be sideline for a couple more matches, according to Nelson.

Round Rock and Westwood entered the match ranked No. 1 and No. 3, respectively, in the American-Statesman's Class 6A poll. The two rivals have shared or split seven of the past 10 district championships.

In other District 13-6A action, Leander swept Hendrickson while Vista Ridge shocked Vandegrift and Stony Point swept Cedar Ridge.