The Plainview Lady Pirates went 0-2 this past week with a loss in the Greater Northeast Activities Conference (GNAC) Tournament and a loss in the NSAA Class D1 Subdistrict Five Tournament to see their 2025 season come to an end.
Most recently, the Lady Pirates travelled to Elgin for the first round of the 2025 NSAA Class D1 Subdistrict Five Tournament on Monday, Oct. 27.
With an 18-10 record in the regular season, the Lady Pirates were awarded the number two seed in the subdistrict tournament, which matched them up with the number-three seeded Bloomfield Bees.
Against the Bees, the Pirates left everything out on the court but ended up falling short in five sets.
With their season on the line, the Pirates came out ready to go in set one, but the Bees managed to gain some distance early and never look back to secure a 25-21 win to start the night.
In set two, the Pirates found their composure and managed to best the Bees 25-18 to tie things up at 1-1.
With the match tied, the Pirates came out in set three and fired on all cylinders to take a commanding 8-2 lead early.
The remainder of the set didn’t come as easily for the Pirates, however, as the Bees managed to crawl their way back to cut the Pirates lead down to just one at 22-21.
Despite the Bees attempts at a comeback, though, the Pirates never blinked and managed to finish out the set on a 3-0 run to clinch a 25-21 win and go up 2-1.
With the win now in sight, the Pirates looked to end things in set four, but the Bees had other plans.
With their backs against the wall, the Bees came out and dominated set four 25-14 to send the match to a winner-take-all set number five.
In the fifth set, both teams gave it their all, and the back-and-forth set went down to the wire.
Unfortunately, in the end it was the Bees who managed to best the Pirates with a 16-14 victory in the set to clinch the 3-2 victory and end the Pirates season in the first round of the subdistrict tournament.
Prior to their season-ending loss to the Bees, the Lady Pirates took on the Summerland Bobcats in the GNAC Tournament fifth-place game on Tuesday, Oct. 21 in Plainview.
Against the Bobcats, the Lady Pirates shot out of a cannon in sets one and two.
While the Bobcats played right alongside the home Plainview squad, there was nothing they could do to stop the Pirates, who consistently stayed out of arm’s reach.
With a 25-20 win in set one followed by a 25-22 win in set two, the Lady Pirates were on the brink of sweeping the Bobcats in route to the fifth-place trophy.
Set three, however, is where the tide turned.
In set three, the Bobcats were finally able to take and maintain a slight lead and secure a 25-21 win to avoid the sweep.
Still up 2-1, the Pirates had control of the match, but it quickly slipped away as the Bobcats continued to build momentum in set four with a 25-16 win to send the match to set number five.
In set five, the Pirates did what they could to regain control of the match, but the Bobcats were determined to pull off the reverse-sweep.
In a decisive set number five, it was Summerland who ultimately earned the victory by a final score of 15-12 to capture fifth place in the 2025 GNAC tournament.
Leading the way for the Pirates in their loss to Summerland were Riley Miller with 16 kills, Kaydance Maertins with 16 kills, Kenadee Doerr with 14 digs, Kenzie Doerr with 14 digs, and Mallory Mauer with 45 assists.
With two losses over the past week, the Pirates finished their 2025 season with a record of 18-11.
Five Pirates saw their high school volleyball careers come to an end with their loss to the Bees on Monday, Oct. 27, including Maertins, Kenzie Doerr, Peighton Arlt, Mauer, and Emma Sauser.
The remaining eight Pirates on the 2025 varsity squad will have the opportunity to return to the court next season.