BY BRIAN STARK

The Gibault Catholic High School volleyball squad ended its season earlier than it had hoped, falling at home to a tough squad in the Class 1A Gibault Regional final on Thursday night.

Carlyle won in two sets, 27-25, 25-22.

Toward the end of the hotly contested match, both teams battled back-and-forth with consistent ties for the last five points.

After outlasting the Hawks in the first set, Carlyle kept up its furious pace in the second set.

Carlyle advances to the Trico Sectional and will face the host school in the first round set for 7 p.m. Monday.

Gibault head coach Kelsey Hartung said she was extremely proud of her team for playing with high energy both Thursday night and throughout the season, and for being able to block out distractions.

“I’m extremely proud of them because this team overcame mental challenges, both as a team and individually,” Hartung said. “During the second half of the season, they focused on one point at a time.”

Thursday’s home match marked the end of three players’ volleyball careers at Gibault (22-16): outside hitter and Greenville University commit Abby Grohmann, libero Emma Schmidt and defensive specialist Josie Thomas.

However, the Hawks look forward to their future knowing they have a strong junior and sophomore class with varsity and postseason experience.