The playoff-bound Alba-Golden Lady Panthers hosted the Lady Panthers of North Hopkins High School Friday in the final game of the regular season.

After squeaking by with a 25-23 win in the first set, the squad from North Hopkins -- which is 38-6 on the year -- came to dominate the match (25-23, 25-15, 25-13).

Alba-Golden certainly retained the momentum throughout the first set. Twice the Lady Panthers gave up short runs to the visitors but recovered and closed the scoreline.

Campbell Shrum came up big with three kills in the first set. She was joined by kills from Averi Stevenson and Sadie Wright and aces from Piper Hallman and Faith Graham.

Alba-Golden tied the set at 24 with a sustained, contested volley at the net, eventually resulting in a North Hopkins mis-hit.

However, North Hopkins dashed Alba-Golden’s hopes with consecutive kills to take the set.

The close loss in set one began a slow separation between the teams.

The second set began as a close affair, but North Hopkins was able to go on a long run, mid-match, to build a 10-point lead 23-13. 

The trend just continued through set number three.

Alba-Golden could not turn the momentum, as the defense and confident offensive play of North Hopkins remained unshaken.

The North Hopkins team includes a couple of talented volleyballers. This allows one or two players to carry the team. Alba-Golden’s success is tied to the contributions of each individual player on the team.  

As Alba-Golden heads to Quinlan-Ford High School Thursday evening to face Wolfe City in the first round of the playoffs, their fortunes will be defined by a true team effort.