Female volleyball player in a white jersey number 1 leaps upward to spike, with a crowded orange gym audience in the background. — Tascosa’s Blaire Whatley finished with seven kills during a District 3-5A opening win at Caprock on Tuesday night. [Carter Pirtle/ Press Pass Sports]

School may have just started, but the High School volleyball season is well underway.

With a stacked 10-team District 3-5A, and a week into the season, league action has already begun Tuesday night with five games on the slate. One of those matchups taking place was a crosstown showdown with the Tascosa Lady Rebels making a short road trip well worth it by sweeping the Caprock Lady Longhorns in three-sets (25-16, 25-10, 25-12) to open the district schedule in style at the Caprock Activity Center.

“It’s always big to get that first district win,” Tascosa head coach Carley McCracken said. “It’s very early in the year to step into district and I’m proud of how our team responded. We have been working on specific things in practice and I feel executed what we have been working on against Caprock. We have a long way to go to hit our potential, but we just have to trust the process.”

Coming off the first tournament weekend, Tascosa improves to 7-4 on the season and 1-0 in District 3-5A. Caprock now falls to 3-6 overall and 0-1 in the league.

Female volleyball player in a white jersey claps and cheers on the court, mid-game. — Tascosa’s Presley Ward celebrates after a point during a District 3-5A match against Caprock on Tuesday night. [Carter Pirtle/ Press Pass Sports]

The Lady Rebels used a balanced performance to pull off this winning effort against Caprock. The offense came in the form of Blaire Whatley and Chandler Graham, who were strong at the net, each posting seven kills. Manufacturing the points was Ellen Daniel dishing out 21 assists. Graham was superb on the serving line as well with three aces.

On the defensive side, Chandler Graham and Kori Nickerson did their job combining for 22 digs. Graham led the way tallying 12 digs with Nickerson following with 10.

“I was really happy with our passing,” McCracken said. “We switched into different defenses and we have as many unforced errors as we did over the weekend. We’re an unpredictable team and we have a lot of players stepping up. Our middle blockers are playing well and that’s big for us. They are new starters this year and we need them to keep growing.”

Tuesday’s quick hits

Reigning district champion Amarillo High picked up where it left off last season. The Lady Sandies cruised past Palo Duro thanks to a three-set sweep, 25-10, 25-9, 25-15, to open league play on Tuesday night. AHS (7-3 overall, 1-0 in district) runs its impressive district win streak to 68 straight games dating back to 2020. Harper Vaughan had a big night landing eight kills while adding three aces. Sophia Ramirez was stellar finishing with 10 aces, and Anzley Davis hit the floor for a game-high 14 digs.

Lubbock-Cooper started off District 3-5A by defending home court getting a four-set win against Frenship Memorial, 25-18, 23-25, 25-9, 25-15, on Tuesday night. The Lady Pirates move to 8-3 on the season and 1-0 in District 3-5A. The Lady Panthers drop to 3-4 and 0-1. Houston Christian commit Broox Lopez played a key cog in the win for Cooper with 26 assists and 13 digs for a double-double.

Frenship adjusted into Class 5A quite well, as the Tigerettes made quick work of Lubbock High in the District 3-5A opener on Tuesday with a 25-16, 25-19, 25-13 sweep on Tuesday. Frenship is off to an 8-4 start on the season and 1-0 in league action. LHS is now 6-6, 0-1. Senior Reese Roberts put together a solid night for the Tigerettes. Roberts showed her versatility landing eight kills to go with 13 digs and four aces.

In the most exciting District 3-5A match of the night, Lubbock Monterey outlasted crosstown rival Lubbock Coronado in a five-set thriller, 15-25, 25-16, 19-25, 25-23, 15-12. The Lady Plainsman improve to 6-2 on the season, but more importantly 1-0 in district. Coronado slips to 4-3 overall and 0-1 in the league. Monterey’s Avery Bradley led the way with 14 kills and three aces followed by Piper Graham’s 11 kills. Despite the loss, Coronado’s Addi Brown had a game-high 33 digs.

In non-district action, the Bushland Lady Falcons continue to soar. Coming off a very strong showing at the Pearland Tournament, the Lady Falcons handled Pampa in a 25-17, 25-18, 25-13. Bushland (7-3) junior standout Berklee Billington was a step above the rest slamming home 12 kills with 10 digs for a double-double. Teammate Laynee Adams chipped in nine kills and Morgan Eberly along with Jaida Scott totaled 35 assists. Eberly registered a team-best 20 assists and Scott handed out 15.

Dumas was able to earn a hard fought non-district win Tuesday by beating Vega, 25-11, 25-11, 18-25, 25-15. Sophie Clements did what she has done her entire career and that’s dominate. Clements ran the offense dishing out 22 assists and played great defense with 10 digs for a double-double. Clements also added eight kills, putting her just two kills short of a triple-double outing. Dumas improves to 5-2 on the year.

Hereford was able to hustle past Lubbock Christian High School for a four-set win, 25-14, 25-19, 18-25, 25-22. Karizma Rivera went for 12 kills to lead the Lady Whitefaces with teammate Teagan Thomas chipping in 11. Kyndall Valdez provided the defense with 20 digs. Hereford moves to 4-6 on the season.

Behind a solid outing from senior Kaetlin Sundvahl, Dalhart outmatched Perryton in a non-district match, 25-17, 16-25, 25-18, 25-21. Sundvahl provided the offense with 19 kills and dished out 17 assists for a double-double. The Lady Wolves improve to 6-2 overall.

The Highland Park Lady Hornets picked up a non-district win by handling Amarillo Accelarate 25-16, 25-21, 25-15. The Lady Hornets have started off the season with a 7-2 mark. Kaitlyn Lucas was excellent on the serving line with four aces and added 15 assists.

Lubbock-Cooper Liberty downed West Plains in a three-set sweep, 25-6, 25-21, 25-11. The victory pushes the Lady Patriots record to 7-4 overall. Ellis Roberts was clutch at the net skying for 13 kills. Teammate Lexie Allgood went for 11 kills.

River Road outlasted Miami in with the match going all the way, 25-16, 20-25, 25-20, 23-25, 17-15.

Darrouzett opened its regular season in grand fashion with a sweep of Channing, 25-15, 25-13, 25-5, moving the Lady Longhorns to 1-0 on the year.