The Ozark Tigers came out with the win on Thursday night vs COC foe Republic High school 3 sets to 1. It was the first Central Ozarks Conference match-up for Ozark this season.

Ozark started out strong in set 1 but Republic kept things tight in a physical match at the net. In a back and forth battle, Ozark was able to take the set with their consistent defensive effort and offensive pressure. They edged out Republic 25-23 to take a 1-0 set lead. Republic won the 2nd set, 25-22, but Ozark responded quickly and took the next two sets by the same scores, 25-20.

On paper, the Ozark Tigers may have been the underdog in this game as Republic is ahead of Ozark in every category including Kills, Digs, Serving Aces, and Assists. The best player for the Republic Tigers last night was senior outside attackers Rilynn Finley who hit .339 and Alaina Norman (.226), but Ozark kept the remaining hitters for Republic in check by playing solid defense both at the net and in the backcourt. Junior libero Macy Humble recorded 22 digs on the night with both defensive specialists sophomore Alexis Andela and senior Jenna LaBarge recording 17 and 16 digs respectively.

The aces was 10-7 in favor of Ozark, with four of those 10 aces in set four. Serving aggressively at a physical team is the key to success and gave Ozark a boost of confidence. Ozark’s team hitting average was .193 and Republic’s was .186. Ozark tabbed 82 kills and Republic had 76 kills in the match. Ozark middle hitters had a stellar night as junior Skylar Hilton recorded 13 kills with a .333 hitting percentage and senior Ashya Thompson recorded 12 kills with a .300 hitting percentage. Outside attacker Reagan Baade hit a solid .230 from the pin, with 22 kills in 61 attempts. Baade, a senior six rotation player also scooped up 9 digs. Junior Reece Cook posted a double-double with 10 digs and 50 assists in the match.

Ozark moves to 9-1 on the season and Republic goes to 10-4. Ozark is ranked 9th in the state while Republic is ranked 19th in the state according to Maxpreps.com. Ozark Varsity will compete next in the Springfield Classic on September 16th at the Fieldhouse in Springfield, Mo.

Ozark JV defeats Republic in 2.
Ozark Freshmen defeats Republic in 2. Both sub-varsity squads are 6-0 on the season.