By DAR STAFF
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. --The Poplar Bluff tennis team closed out the regular season Thursday with an 8-1 loss at Cape Central and will be the No. 6 seed in the MSHSAA Class 2 District 1 team tournament.
The Mules avoided a sweep Thursday with a win in doubles play as senior Kaitlyn Lloyd and junior Mya White won 8-4. The Poplar Bluff pair trailed 4-3 after losing consecutive games but closed out the match by taking the next five.
Lloyd lost her No. 3 singles match against Archna Sobti in a tiebreaker, 8-7(9-7). The match went to an early tiebreaker with darkness approaching.
"She played a tough back-and-forth match really well," Mules coach Charles Harper said.
Central (5-7) won the rest of the singles matches with 8-1 scores.
In doubles play, Poplar Bluff's top-seeded pair of Sara Holland and Shelbey Johnson lost 8-3 while Caitlin Dollins and Clarissa Varner fell 8-1. Lloyd and White improved to 7-5 on the season with their win.
Poplar Bluff (4-9) will travel Monday to Farmington for a quarterfinal match with the Knights, which swept the regular-season meeting. The winner advances to play at second-seeded Oakville the following day.
VOLLEYBALL
Doni Everts had five blocks while Khelie Spence added a pair for Poplar Bluff in a 25-10, 25-21 win at Clearwater on Thursday.
Kiley Bess and Sophia Rowland each had four kills to lead Poplar Bluff (12-5) while Spence and libero Ady Kingree each had three. Rowland had two aces while Hannah Vaughn had eight assists. Haley Slaughter and Bess each had 10 digs.
Brianna Lawson had three blocks and Faith Hoppe added six kills to lead Clearwater (7-9-2). Amy Holmes and Halle Gooch chipped in five assists apiece.
SOCCER
North County scored in the opening minute of the second half to break a scoreless tie to beat visiting Poplar Bluff 3-0 Thursday.
The Mules (3-8) were shut out for a second straight game but trailed by a goal until the 56th minute while North County added another in the closing minute.
The Mules lost the junior varsity game 3-1.