Lady Cats nip Moriarty in five games

MORIARTY — Kameron Kelley finally was able to make her presence felt on Thursday night.

Sidelined for Clovis High’s first three matches of this abbreviated volleyball season, Kelley was starting to work her way back into the rotation before coming up with a big outing in a 19-25, 25-18, 21-25, 26-24, 15-13 victory over Moriarty.

The win came in the Lady Wildcats’ sixth match in the first 11 days of the season. Clovis (3-3), which has alternated wins and losses so far, begins its six-match District 4-5A stretch on Tuesday when it hosts Carlsbad in a 6:45 p.m. clash at The Rock.

“The good thing about this is we were slow-starting in just about every game, but we came back and played pretty well in every game,” CHS coach Darrel Ray said. “Moriarty’s a good team. They were smart with the ball, but we passed pretty well and we served pretty well, and we attacked hard.”

Kelley posted a double-double with 26 digs and 28 assists, while adding six kills and four aces. Senior outside hitter/setter Tabitha Gallegos also had a double-double with 25 digs and 15 assists, to go with a team-best four aces.

Portales 3, Roswell High 2 — You can now declare the Class 4A Portales Lady Rams the presumptive champions of District 4-5A … or, at least, the early leaders.

PHS completed a weeklong sweep of the four-team district on Thursday, posting a 25-20, 25-14, 23-25, 26-24 victory over Roswell High at the Ram Athletic Center.

Junior outside hitter Kylyie Paden continued her strong recent play for PHS (5-0), collecting 12 kills, nine of the team’s 17 blocks and four aces. Senior setter Mattison Blakey added 18 assists and a team-high seven aces.

“Kylyie Paden is just a tough kid to stop,” Lady Rams coach Ruth Chavez said. “And Mattison Blakey had a great night for us both serving and setting.”

Portales now has wins over Clovis, Carlsbad and Hobbs in addition to the Lady Coyotes (1-2). PHS faces a rematch on Saturday at Hobbs.

Chavez said 4-5A will be competitive, although she stopped short of picking a winner.

“I think any of the four schools could win that district,” she said.

After dropping a tight third game, the Lady Rams found themselves eight points down in the fourth set before rallying to pull it out.

“It was a pretty good battle,” Chavez said of the match. “Roswell High pushed us and challenged us. But I felt like we’re starting to get back in sync.”

In Tuesday matches:

Portales 3, Hobbs 1 — The Lady Rams earned a 25-14, 25-19, 20-25, 25-20 victory over the Lady Eagles at the RAC.

Junior middle blocker Adrianna Garcia had 10 kills for the Lady Rams, while Paden collecting eight kills and a whopping nine blocks — including several late to help nail down the final set.

“It was a good night for us,” Chavez said. “Hobbs is a strong, athletic team.

“Teagan Faust and Kinzie Davis passed the ball well for us, and that allowed us to get into our offense.”

Roswell Goddard 3, Clovis 0 — At The Rock, the Lady Cats struggled to keep pace with a solid Goddard contingent and dropped a 25-16, 25-15, 25-17 decision to the Lady Rockets.

“They’re just a good all-around team,” Ray said of Goddard (2-0). “Dewayne (Roberts, Goddard coach) does a great job with them.”

Kelley saw her most extensive action prior to Thursday’s match for the Lady Cats and finished with five kills, 11 digs and five aces. Senior defensive specialist Janelle Macias added nine digs.

“We were a little overwhelmed by their size,” Ray said. “We didn’t show any ability to be able to put the ball down.”