JV goes down fighting against Lovington

By John Earp

The JV Lady Panthers battled a solid Lady Wildcats JV Volleyball team Tuesday, in what turned out to be a very close matchup. Jal barely lost the first game 25-23. In the second game as well, the teams were both neck-and-neck for the most part, until the Lady Panthers began making some critical mistakes, with the Wildcats pulling ahead 18-14. The Lady Panthers then rallied, with Lovington giving up some crucial points, and the Lady Panthers tied the game at 19 before pulling ahead 20-19. The Lady Wildcats then came back and pulled ahead 21-20, capitalizing on some key mistakes by the Lady Panthers. The game continued back and forth for the next several minutes, with the score being tied at 26, then at 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, and yet again at 34 before a timeout was called. The Lady Panthers finally pulled out the win in the second game, 36-34. The Lady Panthers struggled in the first part of the third game, having apparently lost the momentum they had had in the second d game. Lovington pulled out to a 10-4 lead early on, with Jal having trouble with several missed returns and failed serves. The Lady Panthers fought hard but their strength seemed to fade in the third game. The Lady Wildcats went on to win the third game 15-9, winning the match 2-1.