Friendswood's Lady Mustangs, ranked No. 1 in the Texas Girls Coaches Association Class 5A poll, kept rolling Friday night, sweeping the Clear Falls Knights 25-18, 25-22, 25-17 in a non-district volleyball match at Friendswood High School.
The win extends an early-season tear for head coach Sarah Paulk's squad, which opened 2026 with a 3-0 victory over Dickinson on Aug. 11, then won the Port Neches-Groves tournament Aug. 13-15 before dispatching Clear Falls without dropping a set.
The third set was never in doubt. Friendswood jumped out to a 5-0 lead and never trailed, with senior Emery Holder delivering a kill that gave the Lady Mustangs their largest lead of the match, according to the Galveston County Daily News.
The TGCA ranked Friendswood No. 1 in its first Class 5A state poll of the season on Aug. 17. The Lady Mustangs entered 2026 coming off a state semifinal appearance last fall, their 11th trip to the state semifinals in program history and first since 2019, and carrying three consecutive District 20-5A championships.
That pedigree came with questions. Paulk told VYPE Houston in a late-July preseason preview that the roster faced a reset after losing three four-year starters: "We have had three four-year starters graduate, so we need to establish our team 'us.' We return great setting and middles, but will have to figure out who will pass for us."
Through Aug. 21, the Lady Mustangs had not lost a match.
Senior middle blocker Ellie Leitko, the reigning District 20-5A Blocker of the Year, anchors the returning core alongside Ashley Adams, Elaina Holtvluwer and Sarah Grace Hickl.
Clear Falls, a District 18-6A program out of League City, plays in what the Galveston County Daily News called one of the state's toughest volleyball districts alongside Clear Creek, Clear Springs and Dickinson. The Knights' visit to Friendswood served as a cross-classification measuring stick for both sides heading into district play.
The two teams are scheduled to meet again Tuesday, Aug. 25, at Friendswood High School at 4:30 p.m.
