Amy Moyer teams with, among others, Samantha O’Malley and Sarah Behrens to form something of a formidable front row for the Fort Bend Dulles volleyball team.

By the fourth set of Friday night’s game against Memorial, Mustangs coach Beth Gammill had seen enough of Moyer, the Vikings’ 5-foot-11 junior outside hitter.

So she moved her own middle threat, 6-2 senior middle hitter Shawn Hindman, to the outside to counter Moyer.

The move paid immediate and plentiful dividends, as the Mustangs turned the tables on the scrappy Vikings and closed out a 25-16, 25-23, 23-25, 25-10 victory at Don Coleman Coliseum.

“I think when we moved Shawn out there Moyer got scared of a bigger block and started tipping more,” Memorial’s Paige Johnson said. “We came out really strong (in the fourth set) and played better defense. They were real strong picking up balls and real scrappy and weren’t able to get (to balls) and our blocking was much better.”

Hindman had 15 kills to lead Memorial, which improved to 11-4. Moyer had a game-high 23 for Dulles (2-5).

The Mustangs switched up their defense earlier Friday to block in line and cross fashions, meaning the middle hitter doesn’t have to cover as much room in the middle of the court. That came in a loss to Katy in the Spring Branch ISD tournament, and Memorial found itself still adjusting against Dulles.

The Mustangs and Vikings were tied at 19, 20, 21 and 22 late in the second set before Memorial took command, winning on a thunderous Hindman kill.

Dulles fought off Memorial time and again in the third, keeping two points clear late. The Vikings never got that chance in the fourth.

“Dulles has always been scrappy on defense,” Gammill said. “Once we got our blocks started, we did a lot better. … Ball control was better in that (fourth) game, and that certainly made a difference too. …

“We’ve been working on starting out strong. Like against Cinco Ranch (and) the games we’ve lost, we’ve started out like 8-1 in the hole and had to fight back. We’re working on that not happening, which will help us (have) a little more success.”

SBISD finals matchups set
Katy will play Cypress Woods and Pearland will go against Clear Creek in the semifinals of the Spring Branch ISD Tournament Saturday morning at Don Coleman.

The Katy-Cy Woods game will be at 9 a.m., followed by the other semifinal about an hour later. The third-place match is scheduled for 11 a.m.; the championship is scheduled for noon.

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