Nixa overcomes slow start to beat Kickapoo for Class 5 District 11 title

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By Kary Booher (For OzarksSportsZone.com)

The storyline didn’t almost fall apart but certainly wobbled. A postseason geared toward reaching a third consecutive state championship game got interrupted by a district challenger throwing its best shot.

Nixa High School volleyball senior Ally Billmyer, however, wasn’t going to let someone author that story. Not by a long shot. And certainly not two years after an injury kept her under wraps during a memorable playoff run.

Instead, she and the Nixa Lady Eagles rallied after an opening-set loss and locked down the Class 5 District 11 championship on Tuesday night, beating the Kickapoo Lady Chiefs in four sets at Kickapoo High School.

“Even after that first set, we were like, ‘OK. We need to kick it into gear,’” Billmyer said of the victory – 18-25, 25-18, 25-22, 25-13. “We knew we didn’t want it to go five (sets). We had to get it done and do whatever it took.”

Nixa (30-4) plays in the sectional at 6 p.m. Thursday, and Lady Eagles coach Annie Zimmerman already was hinting at a more focused practice for Wednesday.

Yes, her three big hitters led the way, as they combined for 32 kills — specifically Billmyer (13), senior Jaycee Fixsen (10) and Norah Clark (nine). And Maddie Golmen had 23 digs.

But it took Nixa racing to an early seven-point advantage in the second set and sweating out the third set to turn back Kickapoo.

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The Lady Chiefs trailed 20-12 but rallied to within 22-20 late in the third set before Emma Conrad’s surprise touch shot and two Kickapoo errors secured the set victory. In many ways, Nixa was business-like when it mattered.

“I think we came out very, very flat in the first set. That was pretty obvious. We did not play our best volleyball,” said Zimmerman, whose team won state in 2019 and was state runner-up last season. “That’s something, honestly, we’ve been trying to focus on. We’re going to have to make sure we have the right mindset when we step off the bus and step on to the court. Luckily, we kicked it into gear and, from the second set on, we played more disciplined.”

Said Fixsen, “This says we need to come in tomorrow and work even harder. That was our focus after the game. It’s not over. We want to get all the way to state.”

Billmyer certainly plans to heed her coach’s advice and run with it.

Two years ago, a broken finger kept her out of the lineup during Nixa’s state title run. And last year’s finish hasn’t been forgotten.

“I was on the state championship team in 2019, but I’ve always wanted to know what it truly felt like to win a state title,” Billmyer said.

Said Fixsen, “She’s improved so much. She’s improved in her lanes and getting on the block. She’s doing really, really good this year.”

On Tuesday night, the height and athleticism of Nixa’s big hitters – and overall team quickness – seemed to wear on Kickapoo as the night went on. Through stretches, Nixa found holes in the defense with surprise tap hits and hard kills.

In many ways, Kickapoo ended its season with a positive effort. Certainly, the Lady Chiefs opened with the passion to throw an upset.

Senior outside hitter Bella Faria played aggressively near the net and hit with authority. The rest of the lineup, early on, protected its areas well and adjusted in the third set, too, frustrating Nixa.

“Hey, we made a run in that third set. We gave it our best shot, and I think we had them second-guessing that they had that one closed out,” Kickapoo coach Marci Adams said.

Caroline Field finished with 10 kills for Kickapoo, which ended its season 26-8 weeks after the Lady Chiefs won the Ozark Conference.

“I asked the seniors in the locker room, ‘Would you have guessed we would have won 26 games this summer?” Adams said. “We had a long way to go. We really shaped up. There were a lot of positives.”

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