The Quitman Lady Bulldogs fell short of the Lady Devils of Mount Pleasant Chapel Hill to open district play Friday at home in four games, 25-11, 21-25, 25-10, 25-14.

Quitman started slow, giving up six straight points, then falling behind 15-10. Unable to overcome the early deficit, the Lady Bulldogs dropped the opening game 25-11.

The second game saw several highlights Quitman will look to build upon going forward.

Allie Berry had multiple solid hits and Emilee Baker added another. Several diving digs by the Lady Devils kept the Lady Bulldogs at bay, but the tone was set for the game. Quitman rode it to an early 7-4 lead, earning the first Chapel Hill timeout of the match, then extended it to 9-5 on a digging winner by Berry.

The Lady Devils weren’t so easily dismissed, coming back with five straight points to regain the lead.

A winner hit by Kaylie Wood tied it at 10 apiece. A kill from midcourt by Addison Marcee earned a 12-11 margin. Annabelle Popek had a nice tip at the net to get a point and hand the ball back to Hannah Holland, who served four straight points while hitting a nice floater from midcourt on the way to a 17-12 margin.

During that five-point run, the Lady Bulldogs began to apply some much-needed pressure to the stellar Chapel Hill defenders, getting some harder-hit balls over the net. It is this type of play that they will look to generate more consistently through the season.

The Lady Devils drew no closer than two points and Quitman closed out a 25-21 win to tie the match at one game each.

The third game began much like the first, with five straight points to the Lady Devils. Some small misses, errors and miscommunications added up to a swift deficit of 15-3. The Lady Bulldogs held serve just four times on the way to a 25-10 third game loss, unable to generate enough offense to continue applying the pressure they had in the second.

Popek hit a couple of nice winners in the game on her way to seven kills in the match, showing some solid net skills, especially for a freshman. Quitman sophomore Peyton Kruckner, who moved up from JV recently to fill in for injured setter Ashley Davis, is adjusting well to varsity play and successfully set-up Popek and others for 17 assists. On defense, libero Marcee contributed 14 digs to the cause.

The fourth game was tight in the first moments, tied 3-3. Chapel Hill rattled off five straight points before Marcee hit a midcourt winner. A Popek block followed by an unreturnable Berry serve shifted the momentum, forcing a timeout. More net moves by Popek and an ace by Kallie Hoover knotted it at 10-10.

The Lady Devils soon possessed the lead again and would not relinquish it, with a spirited 11-2 run fueling the eventual 25-14 closeout.

The sweep Tuesday in Arp was rough, so head coach Allison Head told her players this home-court match was a step in the right direction – that if they can keep making these small strides they can still make the playoffs.

“They had a lot of good points where they were scrappy and hustling in long volleys, but overall the game just didn’t go our way,” reflected Head. The defense had a great game but the offense could not close points. “It’s hard to score if the other team’s digging up everything we’re sending over.”

Head knows her hitters can find the corners, and they looked to do so Tuesday when hosting the Lady Jackets of Mineola before heading to Harmony Friday.