Stillwater pulls off grudge match comeback
McKenzie Vilade said there was a small bit of panic on the Stillwater sideline. The Pioneers found themselves trailing two sets to nothing against Edmond Memorial in the semifinals of the Class 6A tournament on Monday at Crossings Christian.
But the message on the sideline was one of defiance. “We didn’t come here to lose like this,” Vilade said. “We wanted this game so bad.”
After dropping the opening two, Stillwater rallied to win the next three, including the fifth and final set to 15 to win 3-2 (21-25, 23-25, 25-22, 25-15, 15-10) and advance to the state championship.
The win avenged an early season loss to Edmond Memorial in five sets. Earlier in the day, Stillwater took down Jenks, the team that ended its season in the quarterfinals of the state tournament last year.
“Revenge games have kind of been or specialty this year,” coach Zoe Stinchomb said. “It means a lot for these girls. They have worked their tails off. Go to state and win state.”
Vilade delivered the final point to beat Edmond Memorial on a kill. It was one of 18 for her. Fellow senior Audrey Riley also racked up 18 kills as Stillwater’s athletic outside hitters eventually overwhelmed the Bulldogs.
“Honestly, we just had the drive and the heart that I’ve never seen this team come out with before,” Vilade said. “Everybody was on, and I just hope we can carry it on to tomorrow.” No. 2-ranked Stillwater will take on No. 1 Edmond Santa Fe at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, another potential revenge game for the Pioneers.
Edmond Santa Fe makes it back to title match
Time and time again this season, Edmond Santa Fe has weathered other team’s best shot.
Monday was no different. Deer Creek played the defending class 6A champ close in each set of the state semifinals at Crossings Christian School, but Edmond Santa Fe kept it’s composure, downing the Antlers 3-0 (25-18, 25-20, 25-20) to make it back to the state title match for the second year in a row.
“Playing with a target on your back is hard,” Wolves coach Will Ethridge said. “It’s a difficult thing and everyone is fired up to play you and they bring their best. So it’s a bit of a relief. But we know the one that matters most is tomorrow.”
Edmond Santa Fe’s front line proved to be a big difference in the match. Seniors Nalani McCrary and Kaeli Robinson led the way for the Wolves with 12 and 11 kills, respectively.
“Kaeli Robinson seems to always be on fire against Deer Creek,” Ethridge said. “She’s a workhorse for us. All our hitters did exceptionally well, and Nalani, she just brings a ton of energy to the floor when she comes on.” Ethridge also singled out the play of junior libero Rori Charter.
“She was great tonight,” Ethridge said. “She was putting the ball in our setters hands and making everything click.”
For Deer Creek, the Antlers were led by senior outside hitter Maicee Morgan, who had a game-high 15 kills. Haley Houk provided five more kills while Teagan Polcovich added four.