Jena Medearis didn't want to come away from Nixa's matchup at Ozark on Tuesday with any regrets related at all to tipping instead of hitting.

The junior middle blocker made sure she wouldn't be looking back on her play at the net with any remorse. She responded admirably under pressure and capped the Lady Eagles' five-set win, 17-25, 25-23, 25-23, 27-29, 15-13.

With it being the first five-set match for both teams, it was the longest night of volleyball for both sides in their program's history.

Medearis posted 11 kills and five blocks. She was clutch, netting kills that accounted for two of Nixa's final four points in the fifth set.

"That meant a lot to me. It showed me I wasn't scared anymore," Medearis said. "Previously, I was tipping the ball lot. (Assistant coach Dani Mostrom) told me, 'You need to stop being scared of the ball and swing like it's the last point.' I did tonight and it turned out great. I had to decide, 'Hey, I can do this, just go for it.'"

Medearis was also in the right mental state after being moved from right-side hitter to the middle. Coach Annie Zimmerman made that move after Ozark dominated Nixa in the first set.

"We've been trying to find out what role Jena is going to play," Zimmerman siad. "She started off playing middle, then we moved her to the right side. She'd been practicing on the right side for a week or two, trying to find some rhythm there. I sprung it on her in the second set that she was going to play middle. I talked to her at the end of the first set and asked if she would be ready to do that because I knew she hadn't done it in a while."

"I was like, 'Yesss!'" Medearis said. "I wasn't doing so hot at right side. When she moved me to middle, I kind of flourished. It's my favorite position."

Medaris combined with Taylor Golmen, also a middle blocker/right-side hitter, to give the Lady Eagles a wall at the net. Golmen had 11 kills and a pair of blocks.  

"My biggest thing tonight was to make sure I could be about defense more than offense," Golmen said. "We wanted to make sure we were up and over and on time to stop their powerful hitters. I picked up on their hitters and where they specifically liked to go and then I would shade that way."

"We struggled in the first and second sets effectively blocking their middle when they would run a gap play," Zimmerman said. "They were doing a great job attacking our weakness. By the third set, I feel our blockers made an adjustment. I was proud of our front-row players for not getting frustrated. They worked through it."

Nixa (9-2 overall and 1-1 in the COC) won two of the first three sets, but seemingly was in constant comeback mode. The Lady Eagles rallied to win the second and third sets and spotted Ozark a 19-10 lead in the fourth set, before a making a massive comeback. 

"I told them, 'I'm super proud of your fight, but let's not dig ourselves a hole in the future,'" Zimmerman said. "Even though we weren't able to finish the fourth set, we ended it with a good feel and momentum. I felt good going into the fifth set."

Ozark finally closed out the fourth set on a kill be outside hitter McKenna Rhodes. It was part of her 20-kill, 20-dig, five-block night.

"When the pressure gets tough, we have to work on finishing just a few more points. If we did, tonight would have been different," Rhodes said. "We're going to get back in the gym because we're going to play them again." 

Hannah Tadlock also starred for the Lady Tigers, while collecting 18 kills and seven blocks.

"Hannah was big at the net. She put a lot of pressure on their big attackers. That's something at times we've been good at, but not consistent with," Ozark coach Adrea Brewer said. "Hannah was very consistent blocking on the middle and the left side. But we struggled blocking their right-side attack. That's something we need to work on."