The Southside Mavericks are a long way from where they want to be in late October.

But 6A-Central foes would beg to differ right now.

Hannah Holland had three of the team’s 13 aces and the Mavericks breezed to a 25-11, 25-9, 25-11 sweep of Cabot on Tuesday at Southside Gym.

Playing before another stellar home crowd, the Mavericks were down 4-3 in the first set before running off with a game-ending 22-7 run.

The Mavs used a similar 12-1 run to close the second set.

“Cabot’s really scrappy and played very well, but it was a good night for us,” Southside coach Steve Haaser said. “We had tremendous balance. Our serving was strong again, and our defense and our passing — everything was clicking for us tonight.”

Southside won the third set, 25-11, and Haaser immediately shifted his focus toward Thursday’s big 6A-Central bout with North Little Rock.

“They’ve been strong the last few years, and that’s a tough place to play,” Haaser said. “We’ve definitely got a big challenge. It’s a tough place to play, but the biggest reason is because they’re good.”

Southside sophomore Aleigha Johnson celebrated her 15th birthday Tuesday with eight kills, giving the Mavericks plenty of balance across the front.


Hannah Hogue had 10 kills, eight assists and four aces. Teammates Avery Fitzgerald had nine kills and Holloand added seven kills, respectively.

Southside’s Emily Bass had 22 digs and Sarah Tolbert finished with 17 assists and a dozen digs. Up 4-3 in the second set, back-to-back kills by Holland and Johnson triggered a run that included two kills by Fitzgerald, another by senior Reagan Scifres, and kills by Holland Hogue.

Houge ended the game with back-to-back aces

Johnson asserted herself with three kills in the third set.

“She’s a good player with a lot of talent,” Haaser said. “She’s been improving and she’s getting better and better. If we can get her going, and get a strong performance out of her every time, that’s definitely going to help us.”
