The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Bulldogs sweep into the next round
With no one individual greater than the whole, Olmsted Falls continues down the tournament trail.
Behind some solid serving, a great defensive effort and a relentless attack at the net, the Bulldogs earned their spot in a district semifinal with a 25-19, 25-13, 25-23 Division I Grafton District win over Southwestern Conference rival Avon Lake on Oct. 19. Olmsted Falls will play St. Joseph Academy, which defeated Westlake 25-21, 25-17, 25-6 in the earlier game, on Oct. 25 at 6 p.m.
“We’ve gotten to 19 wins this year because we’ve played as a team,” Olmsted Falls Coach Brigid Radigan said. “Our team chemistry is just off the charts. If somebody is having a rough game, we’re fortunate that somebody steps up and we’re able to offset that because of our teamwork.”
The Bulldogs (19-4) held a 11-10 lead in the first set before their serving helped them take a 17-10 lead.
“If somebody is having a rough game, we’re fortunate that somebody steps up and we’re able to offset that because of our teamwork.”
— Olmsted Falls coach Brigid Radigan
Jeanie Edgington had a block kill and a kill during the run, while Meghan Sheneman had an ace. Sheneman’s serves kept the Shoregals’ off-balance and took them out of system.
Though Avon Lake (15-9) closed the gap to 20-17, Kaye Dregalla helped extend Olmsted Falls’ lead. Dregalla (team-high 11 kills) closed it with another kill.
The Bulldogs jumped out to an early 6-1 lead in the second set as their attack was starting to pick up the pace. With 6-foot Kacie Burton (31 assists) setting up the attack, the Shoregals tried to slow it down.
Burton, who had 17 kills in the last meeting between the two teams, picked her spots to do her dinks. But more importantly, she set up the hitters with perfect sets.
“They (Olmsted Falls) have a lot of weapons,” Avon Lake Coach Dan Berkheimer said. “Whenever you have a setter like that (Burton), you can use all the weapons you have.”
The hard-floating serves Olmsted Falls used continued to give the Shoregals trouble in the back row. It allowed the Bulldogs to close out the second set on a hitting error by Avon Lake.
Though down, Avon Lake continued to battle.
The Shoregals trailed, 147, in the third set, but rallied. Behind the serving of Macey Buchanan, the Shoregals came all the way back to tie it at 14. Sarah Hessel had two of her seven kills during the run. But Olmsted Falls regrouped and responded to take a 20-17 lead.
Once again the Shoregals responded and closed the gap down to 24-23. However, Edgington clinched the win with her seventh kill.
With the balance attack at the net, Dregalla knew exactly where the credit went to.
“Her (Burton’s) sets are amazing,” Dregalla said. “It’s easy to maneuver around her and adjust. Avon Lake had good blocks, but it was always easy with Kacie’s sets.
“Avon Lake came out strong … I’m excited about moving on.”
Junior Emily Schillinger, who broke the school record for kills in a season, led Avon Lake with 10 kills. Alex York had 14 assists, while junior libero Tate Rybarczyk had 16 digs.
“We have a lot of returning girls with a lot of experience,” Berkheimer said. “Even though we graduate four very important seniors, I think that experience will help us next year.”