GUYTON -- The South Effingham Lady Mustangs  got out of a hole by digging deep within themselves when it counted the most.

Down 19-15 in the opening set against rival Effingham County at home on Tuesday, the Lady Mustangs finished with a flourish to win 27-25. They won the second set, too, 25-23, after being down 21-20.

Most of the early rallies in the opening set ended quickly, often by unforced errors. The last few exchanges were epic, however, as players on both squads made lunging shots to save points.

"That's one thing about these girls. They will fight against this team," South Effingham coach Jennifer Cribbs said. "Every single ball, they are going to go for it."

Cribbs expects the victory to give her team, which has only two seniors, a confidence boost.

"I  hope it will take them on through the season and get them pumped up and ready to go," she said. "They are definitely a talented young group. We had five seniors last year and these girls have really stepped it up and are doing a great job."

Katie Cartrette, Ginger Vorel and Kayla Arnold excelled at the net, combining for several key kills.

Maggie Morgan also shined for South Effingham.

"An injury forced us to call her up from the JV game," Cribbs said. "She was a little bit nervous but, after talking to her a little bit and talking with the lineup and things like that, she did a great job. I was really  proud of her for taking on such a big, scary challenge."

Earlier in the day, the Lady Mustangs fell to St. Vincent's in three sets, 28-26, 22-25 and 25-18. Effingham County also lost to the Saints in three sets, 23-25, 26-24 and 25-19.

See the Aug. 29 edition of the Effingham Herald for more details.