By RYAN ARENA

Sports Editor

West St. John was denied a chance to clinch second place in District 3-V and the playoff spot that comes with it, falling to host Ascension Catholic 25-18, 25-12, 25-16 Thursday.

Kyla Morris led the Rams with 15 blocks, six kills and 17 digs, but it wasn’t enough to topple the district champion Bulldogs.

West St. John (10-11, 5-3) now must ready itself for an elimination match one way or the other, pending the result of White Castle’s final district contest. A White Castle win means it would play WSJ in a second place district tiebreaker. A White Castle loss would mean WSJ is off to the postseason.

“That’s my focus now. Simply getting them ready and focused on what we’ve got ahead, whether it’s White Castle or the state tournament.”

Talor Lewis had 26 digs and two aces for the Rams. Malala Farnell added 13 digs and two kills. Shanea Julien had 12 digs, two kills and two blocks.

The Rams lost a lead in the first game, then played from behind in each of the final two.

“The tempo was high in the first game,” said West St. John Coach Glenda Rush. “The girls had a lead, they were covering well, doing everything right. They just caught us at the end.

“But after that, the bottom just dropped out for whatever reason.”

Ascension Catholic led 21-4 in the third game before WSJ rallied to score 16 points. But the deficit was far too large to overcome.

“The girls rallied. They fought, and I told them I was proud of them,” said Rush. “It was a rough loss, but it just didn’t fall for us.”

It was the second district game of the week for West St. John. The first had a different result. On Tuesday, the Rams defeated host East Iberville 25-6, 25-14, 25-15.

Lewis had 30 digs to lead the Rams. Morris added 18 digs and five blocks. Julien had three aces, 15 digs and two kills. Farnell had three kills.

“The girls took care of business. They played a solid game from start to finish,” said Rush. “We did what we were supposed to do.”