Northside volleyball coach Matt Waack loved the effort.

So did Southside coach Natalie Throneberry.

Southside topped Northside in four sets (25-12, 21-25, 25-17, 25-17) Tuesday in a benefit match at Southside Gym.

The teams open the season next week.

Waack believes the Lady Bears are making small strides.

“I don’t think we showed up the first game like we should have,” he said. “But that’s one reason I like playing the benefit match with them; I like seeing them early. We have to fight it out and get used to that competition. We’re trying to close the gap; it’s the mental part.”

The Lady Bears haven’t beaten Southside since 2006. But they gave the Mavs all they could handle.

“We’ve talked about a lot about not putting a cap on our potential,” Throenberry said. “We were in a couple of situations where it was pure chaos, and we need that. We have a long way to go before we’re at our peak.”

Sophomore Torree Tiffee led the Mavs with a dozen kills. Fellow sophomore Olivia Melton also played well.


“Torree’s done great; Olivia’s done great,” Throneberry said. “I actually made a last minute switch yesterday. She (Melton) was not playing a lot outside. She did well; she’s still kind of my utility player right now, but I’m really proud of her.”

Senior Kelsey Hamilton led the Mavs with five aces.

Bailey Vega, a senior middle blocker, also played well.

After getting blitzed in the first set, the Mavs responded with a late run in the third game.

“It’s was nice to see us come back and put some games together,” Throenberry said. “I stress that it’s still early.”

The Mavs open with Van Buren on Tuesday.

Northside will face Springdale.


For the Lady Bears, Sydney Klein played well.

“She came out really big,” Waack said. “We’ve been dueling her and another senior for that right side spot. She had a couple of key blocks and did a lot of scoring.”

Captain Lexie Mosby played well, Waack said.

“We have to find a way to get Nicole (Medlin) more involved,” the coach said. “We have to get her the ball; we didn’t pass well early. We need her to hammer it, because there’s not going to be very many people that will be able to contend with her.”


