All eyes turn to a rematch between Dominican, MCA

   
    Playing a volleyball match inside a packed gymnasium is rather unusual … unless the opponents are Mount Carmel and Dominican.
    That was never more prevalent than on Oct. 9 when the two District 6-5A rivals met at Mount Carmel.
    With ears ringing from the din of student cheers and jeers, Dominican pulled an upset of the No. 1 seeded Cubs, 25-18, 25-20, 22-25, 25-22 to end a streak of 24 straight wins for MCA.
    The teams and most among the capacity crowd of spectators and students donned pink uniforms or T-shirts in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness month. The “pink games” help raise money for breast cancer research.
    As important as the cause was the outcome. Not only did the Dominican victory end Mount Carmel’s victory streak, it put Coach Ashlee Smith’s team in the district lead after one round of play.
    Dominican took charge through the first two games to force the Cubs to have to win three to overcome the deficit.
    Mount Carmel settled down to take in the third game, but Dominican reasserted itself and ended the match after four games.
    Since then, both have lost to the defending Division I state champion, Fontainebleau, in last week’s Country Day tournament.
    Dominican will host the rematch on Oct. 24, the final evening of regular-season play. The game is expected to draw another capacity crowd as both set their sights on the  state tournament Nov. 8-10 at the Pontchartrain Center. Playoff pairings will be announced on Oct. 29.
    Mount Carmel entered the week with a 29-2 record Dominican is 26-4.