Amanda Hall helped make what was already going to be a big match for Denton next week even bigger.

The junior outside hitter pounded out 14 kills on Friday and set the tone for Denton in an easy 25-23, 25-16, 25-10 sweep of cross-town rival Ryan in a District 5-4A match at Billy Ryan Gym.

Denton (17-6) improved to 3-0 in district play with the win, setting up a showdown with state-ranked Guyer (3-0) for the outright lead in the district standings Tuesday. The Lady Wildcats had a bye in district play on Friday night.

"It helps us a lot to go into the Guyer match unbeaten," Hall said. "We are all looking forward to it."

Guyer is ranked ninth in the Texas Girls Coaches Association's Class 4A poll and is the only other team unbeaten team in the district.

"I try not to hype up one match more than another," Denton coach Heather Stewart said. "There is an emotional element to the match more than others. That feeds into the way the girls play as long as they don't let it overwhelm them."

Denton handled the emotional element of its match against Ryan (13-9-3, 1-2) and came away with one of its more complete performances of the season. Junior outside hitter Mandy Muncy finished with 10 kills to give Denton two players in double figures, while setter Paige Flowers finished with 30 assists.

Denton's balanced attack overwhelmed Ryan after the teams fought through a close first game. The score was tied at 19 before Hall helped Denton pull away by posting kills on two of the Lady Broncos’ last three points of the first game, including one on game point.

"The first game always shows how a match will go," Hall said. "We started out awesome and passed the ball well. That got us going."

Ryan was never able to recover from letting the first game slip away. Denton broke an 8-8 tie by running off five straight points to take control of the second game and started the third game with a 7-0 run.

Denton maintained a lead after making each run.

"We had a tough time bouncing back after the first game," Ryan coach Cindy Williams said. "We were not playing at the level we should have been. We are a lot better than how we played. Fundamentally, we were not where we needed to be and were not mentally tough."

Senior middle blocker Keidra Williams finished with six kills to lead the Lady Raiders. Senior outside hitter Sarah Telaneus added five kills, while Hannah Marshall had 11 assists.

Those totals were not nearly enough on a night when Denton came in determined to win and build momentum for its match with Guyer.

"After tonight, I am excited about the way we are playing going into the Guyer match," Stewart said. "We have a tough schedule with Ryan tonight, Guyer on Tuesday and [Wichita Falls] Rider on Friday, but you might as well get the three big dogs out of the way early."

BRETT VITO can be reached at 940-566-6870. His e-mail address is bvito@dentonrc.com.