ANDERSON -- The McDonald County volleyball team made its home debut Tuesday, still in search of its win of the season.
The Lady Mustangs came up short of notching that first victory, falling to Mount Vernon, 3-1 (25-17, 21-25, 25-15, 25-21), at Mustang Arena, but MCHS coach Logan Grab said her team isn't far away and was breaking through.
"We're right on the cusp of something really good," Grab said. "I can feel it. Our kids are working really hard together. Our defense is getting better. Our defense, if we can keep that consistent, our offense is better whenever we're able to have better passes. That still remains our focus. We're trying to have the perseverance to keep pushing forward."
After dropping the first set, 25-17, the Lady Mustangs bounced back in the second set to tie the match, 1-1.
McDonald County showed a balanced offense with kills coming from multiple players, including seniors Madison Parker and Megan Elwood, junior Savannah Leib, and freshmen Carlie Martin and Kayana Fields.
The Lady Mustangs scored the first three points of the third set, but Mount Vernon responded and regained control.
An Elwood kill pulled McDonald County back within 14-12, but Mount Vernon went on an 11-3 run to finish off a 25-15 victory to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
McDonald County (0-5) seemed on the verge of pushing the match to a fifth set when it took a 21-20 lead in a back-and-forth contest in the fourth set. But Mount Vernon got a pair of kills at the end from sophomore Cheyenne Bieber to help finish off a 25-21 victory and a 3-1 match win.
Bieber led the Lady Mountaineers (4-6-1) with 19 kills, and Mount Vernon seemed to go to her whenever it needed a point on Tuesday.
"Cheyenne is an extremely competitive player," said Mount Vernon coach Bridgett Schmutz. "She's only a sophomore, and so we've been talking to her all season about the fact that she can do things out there on the floor that a lot of people can't do. Sometimes you face hitters that have one shot or two shots, and she just finds different areas of the floor to put the ball. So yeah, she did a great job. She did a great job from the service line for us, just keeping them out of the system. It's exciting to see our young group rally and get a 'W' tonight."
Mount Vernon setter Macie West had 42 assists, while Payge Evans had 23 digs.
Martin led McDonald County with nine kills, while Parker and Leib each had seven kills.
Jayden Forcum had 30 assists, while Hay Nay Way contributed 26 digs.
Grab said the Lady Mustangs were excited about playing at home after the first four regular-season games were on the road.
"Absolutely, we've been on the road every since our jamboree, so I know the girls were really excited about our first home match here," Grab said. "We had a great crowd, so we appreciate everybody's support."
The Lady Mustangs are back at home Thursday, Sept. 15, against Carl Junction, beginning with the freshman match at 4:30 p.m., followed by junior varsity and varsity.
Joplin 3, McDonald County 0
The Lady Mustangs fell at Joplin on Thursday, Sept. 8, 3-0 (25-15, 25-13, 25-17).
Megan Elwood led the Lady Mustangs with five kills, while Jayden Forcum had 14 assists and Carlie Martin nine digs.
GRAHAM THOMAS/MCDONALD COUNTY PRESS McDonald County senior Madison Parker (No. 24) hits against the Mount Vernon block during a volleyball match at Mustang Arena on Tuesday, Sept. 13. Mount Vernon won the match, 3-1.