VOLLEYBALL: Carthage Eliminates GHS in Area

Gatesville High's run in the Class 4A playoffs ended Thursday night, as Carthage downed the Hornets 25-20, 25-12, 25-23 in the area round playoffs at Corsicana. With the loss, GHS sees its season end at 33-9. Carthage, champions from District 19, advances to the regional quarterfinals. "Carthage was just the better team tonight," said GHS coach Rickey Phillips. "They did a better job up front than we did and they finished more plays offensively. I thought those were two of the big keys in the game." Lexi Hall totaled 10 kills for the Hornets, followed by Michaela King with eight, Brianna Poe six and Madison Carpenter four. Mikayla Heckmann dished out 21 assists, while Makaylee Mueller had seven digs. King also added three blocks. "I was proud of the way our kids fought all night until the very last point," said Phillips. "We've been doing that since the very first game in early August. It told us what we, as coaches, already knew about our team." Gatesville, making its 12th-consecutive postseason appearance, had advanced to the playoffs as the No. 3 seed from District 17 and had beaten 18-4A runner-up Fairfield in bi-district two nights earlier.