Lawrence High School head coach Stephanie Magnuson talks to her team during a timeout Saturday morning at the Joan L Wells Invitational in Lawrence.

When Lawrence High’s volleyball team finds its rhythm, it has a potent attack that’s difficult for any team to stop. It’s just a matter of staying consistent.

The Lions had a 2-3 record on Saturday as they took fourth place at the Joan Wells Invitational at LHS.

Lawrence topped Shawnee Mission Northwest, 23-25, 25-19, 25-17, and Dodge City, 25-15, 25-18. However, the Lions dropped both of their matches in bracket play.

“Earlier today, we started off good,” said junior Caroline Dykes, who led the team with 26 kills and 6.5 blocks throughout the day. “When we got to, like, the harder teams, we kind of freaked out a little bit.”

The Lions (11-14) lost to Shawnee Heights in the semifinals, 25-12, 25-8, and dropped two matches to Blue Valley, losing 25-9, 25-17 in pool play and, 25-21, 25-23 in the third- place match.

“I feel like once we get down, we just get shaken up and get frustrated,” senior Keeli Billings said. “But there’s a few of us that can pull each other up, and once we do that, then we’re good to go.”

When the Lions get into a groove, their attacks are as efficient as clockwork. Setters Marlee Bird and Kyleigh Severa connected with Dykes, Billings, Jensen Edwards, Cienna Sorell, Makayla Wagner and Nez Iskandrani for easy kills. Bird had 41 assists to go along with 10 service aces, while Severa had 28 assists.

On defense, Nico Kenney and Nicole Owens had 27 and 21 digs, respectively.

In the win against Dodge City, six players had kills — including seven from Billings, six from Dykes and five by Edwards.

“It’s awesome. It’s so much fun,” said Billings, who had 41 digs and 20 kills on the day. “It, like, shows us and tells us why we play the game. I don’t know, it’s just so much fun. It makes it all worth it.”

The Lions showed what can happen when they don’t get flustered. They gave Blue Valley a tough test in their rematch.

“The way we finished was better. It was good,” Dykes said. “It’s just a big step forward for us, and it just shows what we have for the future.”