Soccer, VB, cross country
One local high school may have been a surprising volleyball sectional winner, the other was definitely not.
Whether they were expected to be there or not, Culver Girls Academy and Triton will now compete in this Saturday’s regional round.
CGA came from two sets down to defeat Kankakee Valley and claim its first sectional since 1982 and returns to the same site - Hanover Central - for the Class 3A regional. Triton was the heavy favorite in Sectional 50 and took care of business with a straightset whooping of West Central in the final and now heads to the Class 1A Culver Regional. Here is a preview of both regionals involving those two teams.
CLASS 3A
This is unchartered territory for the Lady Eagles’ program.
“The team is really excited about the regional tournament,” gushed CGA head coach Matt Boland, whose squad will be the underdog in the semifinal and the final if it reaches that far. “Frankly, we were ranked well below both (sectional opponents) Hanover Central and Kankakee Valley and came out on top. I could not have been more proud of the team effort and determination they displayed. My take is one opponent at a time, but if we make it to the (regional) finals anyone can win at that point.”
CGA ( 20- 7) will face Benton Central (25-4) in the morning semi at 10 a.m. The second semi pits #6 New Prairie (23-7) versus Griffith (8-9).
“Certainly New Prairie is the favored team to advance out of our regional,” added Boland. “However, I am pleased with the draw to play Benton Central and hopefully face New Prairie in the finals. We dealt with a lot of injuries this season and it has made for a resilient team that counts on everyone to do their
job. Those kinds of teams are dangerous in the postseason.”
Setter Mckenna Littleton had an outstanding sectional, while Catherine Vermeulen and Taylor Bowen had double-doubles in the finals with 29, 21 kills and 15,12 digs, respectively.
“While (Vermeulen and Bowen) were dominant, a key to our sectional victories was our role players,” stated Boland.
CGA lost its six- foot starting outside hitter Sami Jorgensen to a season- ending ankle injury last Monday, but freshman Megan Gifford stepped right in to fill that role and others like Lani Dye “came in to serve extremely tough when we needed it.”
CGA has not played
Benton Central, nor do they have any common opponents.
“I do know they have an excellent middle hitter and two young, but very talented, outside hitters,” Boland said. “I think it should be a very entertaining match. I love 50-50 matches where it simply comes down to who can execute their game plan the best.”
Team stat leaders for CGA are Bowen (kills, digs, blocks), Littleton (assists) and Luci Landry (aces).
CLASS 1A
Triton’s sectional win was the sixth in the last seven years so it is no surprise to see the Lady Trojans back in the regional round.
“The team was very focused for our three matches during sectional,” said Triton head coach Derek Eveland. “I was very pleased with our serving, passing, and the tempo of our offense. We seem to be bonding and peaking at the right time. I feel as though this is one of the stronger 1A regionals in the state. We have two ranked teams and we have also had our share of time in the rankings. On paper, it looks like we are in store for some very competitive matches.”
Triton (24-10) will face #6 Kouts (23-5) in the morning semi at 10:30 a.m., followed by #3 Pioneer (26-3) versus Lakewood Park Christian (13-10) in the second semi.
Triton, which was ranked No. 1 for a week early in the season, has not played Kouts. The Lady Mustangs are led by hitters Makenzie Martin and Sophia Foster and run an offense and defense similar to Triton’s.
The Lady Trojans’ stat leaders are Emma Hepler ( assists), with Abbey Viers (308, 88), Addyson Viers (251, 62), and Lexia Hostrawser (219, 58) leading in kills and blocks, respectively. Madeline Doll leads the team with 53 aces followed by 45 from Hostrawser. Molly Mcfarland has the most digs.
“This team has worked very hard this year and improved in many areas,” continued Eveland. “We
have been led by an amazing group of seniors and they are very excited to compete at the regional. They obviously have goals of reaching the next level and will do everything they can to prepare for that challenge. Our focus is one play, one point, one set at a time. At the end of the day,
we will see what they have achieved.”
If the Lady Trojans do get past the Lady Mustangs, a Triton-pioneer final could be a classic. The HNAC foes played five close sets during the season, with Pioneer winning the final set by the score of 15-12.