On the final day of the Region XIV Tournament hosted for the first time ever by Panola College, the Fillies rallied to defeat San Jacinto-Central in a grueling 4 set match (25-27, 25-15, 28-26, 27-25) to earn their second trip to the National Tournament in two years. Panola had to bounce back from a loss to Tyler Junior College in the Region XIV Championship match Saturday night to claim the runner-up spot over the San Jac Ravens Sunday afternoon in an epic match that featured 12 ties in the final set. Rebecca Rabius stepped up offensively to lead the Fillies with 14 kills, and freshman middle blocker Thaynara Godoi added a season high 10-kill performance. Cayman Sutton and Molly Harris combined for 50 assists and 33 digs to go along with 19 digs from Hannah Ramirez and 16 from sophomore Jaqueline da Silva. However, it was the physical play of sophomores Kaitlyn Adams (11 kills and 11 blocks) and Barbara Sabino (9 kills and 9 blocks) that allowed the Fillies to gain the edge they needed at the net to pull out the win. After leading the Fillies all weekend, the two were also named to the Region XIV All-Tournament team for their efforts.
In their opening two rounds of the Region XIV Tournament, Panola swept both Laredo College (25-20, 25-23, 25-17) and then Blinn College (25-11, 25-17, 25-22). Kaitlyn Adams led with 18 kills, Rebecca Rabius added 16, Melanie Casteel tallied 12, and Barbara Sabino chipped in 11 in the two opening victories. Cayman Sutton led with 43 assists, while Molly Harris added 15 and Kinly Carter dished out 12. Both Sutton and freshman Audrey Slaten added 19 digs, while freshman libero Hannah Ramirez led with 21.
The sweep against Blinn College advanced the Fillies to the championship game where they dropped a hard fought battle to TJC: 28-26, 21-25, 22-25, 21-25. Sophomores Kaitlyn Adams and Barbara Sabino both once again led the Fillies offensively, with Adams tallying 11 kills on .370 hitting and Sabino adding 11 kills on a .381 hitting clip. Hannah Ramirez led with 19 digs, followed in double-digits by the trio of Molly Harris (13), Audrey Slaten (11), and Cayman Sutton (10). Sutton and Harris also combined for 42 assists in the loss.
With the regional tourney wins, Panola moves to 25-6 overall and will join Tyler in representing Districts H and I at the NJCAA National Tournament hosted by Hutchinson, Kansas November 16-18. Official seeding and the bracket schedule is set to be announced by the NJCAA National Office Tuesday.