‘HUNGRY TO PLAY’
Notre Dame Prep sweeps Regina as tournament resumes
Notre Dame Prep ended a long layoff by winning a short volleyball match.
Showing no ill effects from a two-month COVID-19 delay in the state tournament, the Irish rolled to a three-set victory over Regina in a Division 2 quarterfinal at L’Anse Creuse North on Tuesday.
Sophia Sudzina’s kill ended the match as coach Betty Wroubel’s team advanced to meet Lake Odessa Lakewood at 4:30 p.m. Thursday in a state semifinal at Kellogg Arena in Battle Creek.
“I think we were hungry to play,” Wroubel said after the 2514, 25-13, 25-20 victory. “We came out like gangbusters.
“I thought we did OK. Our timing was off on some things. We missed a lot of stuff, but we did a lot of good things too. Everybody played, and that’s always nice when you can get everybody in.”
Maggie Peitz made two kills and Heather Broski served an ace to spark Regina’s 7-1 flurry late in the third set, but by then the Irish were well on their way to a fourth straight appearance in the state final four.
“I give them all the credit. They played very well and made very few errors,” Regina coach Rebecca Ratkov said of the Irish. “They played a very clean volleyball game.
“They play excellent defense and they don’t let the ball hit the court. That’s what it came down to today.”
Sudzina had three kills, including one set up by Olivia Kowalkowski, the team’s only senior, to ignite a 10-2 run that gave Notre Dame Prep an 18-9 lead in the third set of both teams’ first match since Nov. 12.
Sudzina’s kills accounted for five Irish points during a 6- 0 rally
that gave Notre Dame Prep an 18-8 lead in the second set ophomore Margo Sudzina served the first four points of the match to get Notre Dame started, and junior Alyssa Borellis contributed a pair of kills midway through the opening set as the Irish pulled away.
Regina (21-7) was in the quarterfinals for the second consecutive year.
Ratkov said resilience was a quality the Warren team showed throughout the season, which began in the summer with outdoor practices because teams weren’t allowed to work out inside due to coronavirus concerns.
“Any bumps in the road, they took them in stride,” Ratkov said. “We had a great group of seniors. They didn’t let anybody falter.
“I think they’ll take that resilience with them. I hope they embrace the idea that things may not always go the way you had planned, but you can still achieve what you want to achieve.”
Wroubel said she isn’t sure whether the Irish will plan to stay overnight in Battle Creek if they defeated Lakewood and advance to Saturday’s 4 p. m. championship match.
“I’m very nervous to do that,” she said. “How do we manage all.that and do it safely?S I’m not sure how we’ll plan it.”
Lakewood beat the Irish in a 2019 state semifinal, and the Irish defeated the Vikings in the 2017 state Class B final.
Lakewood defeated Ann Arbor Richard in a quarterfinal at Tecumseh on Tuesday.
In the other state semifinal, Grand Rapids Christian takes on Cadillac at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.