By GALEN WELLNICKI

 Georgetown's Lady Eagles can finish the first round of the District 23-5A volleyball race a with shiny 7-0 record and realistically only need three more victories to guarantee an end to their two-year absence from the UIL state playoffs when they travel to Bastrop for a 6:30 p.m. match on Friday.

 However, coach Jenny Richardson's crew must not let the contest become the dreaded "trap encounter." GHS is riding a high after a three-set sweep of arch-rival East View on Tuesday and Bastrop appears to be getting its game in gear with consecutive wins over Elgin and neighborhood-rival Cedar Creek after dropping its first four district matches. The Bears also have motivation -- an upset victory Friday would throw them into the thick of the battle for fourth place with Pflugerville and Pflugerville Connally that contains one of 128 tickets to the 5A playoffs.

  The 25-16, 25-15 and 25-13 win over the Patriots enabled Georgetown to improve its season mark to 20-16 after going 14-16 against a non-district schedule stacked with high-caliber opponents. The Lady Eagles have won 18 0f the 19 sets they've played in 23-5A matches with the only divot being to second-place Pflugerville Hendrickson, which also owns a win over East View.

  For the season, Bastrop owns a 11-26 season mark, including the 2-4 district reading that has produced a 9-15 mark in sets won. Hendrickson and East View were the only 23-5A opponents to sweep the Bears.

  Richardson was overjoyed with Tuesday's victory over the Patriots before a large, highly charged crowd at Eagle Gy,.

  "We played really well," Richardson said. "We played with energy and was able to maintain our focus for the entire match. Our concentration was solely on winning the match,

  "It was middle school and elementary night and it was great to see the younger girls also focused in on the match and seeing what being a Lady Eagle is all about."

  Georgetown's 6-foot-5 sophomore Addi Gaido was back after spending last weekend working with in the national team development program. She downed 14 kills from her 33 attacks, accounting for more than half of the Lady Eagles' 27 team kills. At times, it seemed some of her hits would put dents in the gym floor that would require the GISD to raise the tax rate to repair the damage. She also had four total blocks and four digs -- a stat senior teammate Alexis Flora dominated with 25 of 54.

   In the opening set, GHS led 7-6 but then went on a tear, outscoring the Patriots, 18-10, with a Gaido kill providing the set point.

   Again, a 7-6 Georgetown lead was magic as the Lady Eagles outscored East View 18-9 from that point. This time, senior Kate Stengle, who was No. 2 on the match kill list with seven, provide the kill for the set point.

   The Lady Eagles didn't wait quite as long to start what proved the match-winning charge, producing 20 of the final 29 points. Match point came on a kill by sophomore McKenzie Bernard.

   Senior Ellie Quiroz was named the Lady Eagles' player of the contest. and sophomore Issabella Casanova had 12 of GHS' 14 assists. Senior Karsyn Hamons and Stengle helped eliminate damage on their side of the net with eight and seven digs, respectively.

   Junioe Ashlyn Walther, senior Nikalerre Tatum and sophomore Malssa Pozo were key figures for the Patriots, who fell to 18-10 for the season.

   GHS won all nine sets Tuesday with the JV improving to 17-1 with a score of 25-8, 25-11 and scores of 25-14, 25-11 allowed the Freshman White (A) to improve to 5-1 in district and the Freshman Blue (B) also had a 2-0 sweep.

   Friday night in Bastrop, the JV and Feshman White will play at 5:30 p.m., while the Freshman Blue will be in Belton for a5:30 p.m. contest.

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TUESDAY'S DISTRICT 23-5A MATCH

At Eagle Gym

GEORGEROWN DEF. EAST VIEW 3-0 (25-16, 25-15, 25-13)

 Season records: Georgetown, 20-16; East View, 18-10.

 Georgetown statistics Kills: 27-82 (10 errors). Hitting percentage: .207. Kill efficiency: 32.5. Individuals: Alexis Flora, 0-3; Claire Mitchell, 3-7; Karsyn Hamons, 0-1; Kate Stengle, 7-20; Victoria Guyton, 0-7; Kamryn Shelton, 1-6; Ellie Quiroz, 0-2; McKenzie Bernard, 1-2; Addi Gaido, 14-33; Issabella Casanova, 1-1.

 Aces (7-73): Flora 1, Hamons 1, Quiroz 3, Casanova 2. Total blocks (10): Mitchell 1,Stengle 2, Guyton 3,Shelton 1, Bernard 1, Gaido 4. Digs (54): Flora 25, Hamons 8, Stengle 7, Shelton 2, Quiroz 3, Bernard 1, Gaido 4, Casanova 4. Assists (14): Flora 1, Stengle 1, Casanova 12.

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 East View statistics unavailable,.

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DISTRICT 23-5A AT A GLANCE

 Standings: GEORGETOWN, 6-0; Pflugerville Hendrickson, 5-1; East View, 4-2; Pflugerville, 3-3; Bastrop, 2-4; Pflugerville Connally, 2-4; Bastrop Cedar Creek, 1-5; Elgin, 1-5.

 Friday's results: GEORGETOWN 3, EAST VIEW 0 (25-16, 25-15, 25-13); Hendrickson 3, Connally 0 (25-12, 25-13, 25-7); Pflugerville 3,Elgin 2 (25-9. 23-25, 25-11, 22-25, 15-9); Bastrop 3, Cedar Creek 2 (Individual set scores unavailable).

 Friday's matches: Georgetown at Bastrop, 6:30 p.m.; Elgin at Hendrickson, 6:30 p.m.; Connally at East View, 6:30 p.m.; Cedar Creek at Pflugerville, 6:30 p.m.

  (End of first round)

 Tuesday's matches: Georgetown at Connally, 6:30 p.m.; Cedar Creek at Hendrickson, 6:30 p.m.; Elgin at East View, 6:30 p.m.; Bastrop at Pflugerville, 6:30 p.m.