Novak, Neuqua Valley deliver under pressure

Like any hitter, Neuqua Valley’s Leighanne Novak doesn’t enjoy watching sure-kills get dug up by the other side.

“It’s so frustrating,” said the Wildcats senior. “You think you’re about to cheer a point and then you have to keep playing. Frustrating.”

Novak didn’t let up Monday when Neuqua needed her most.

She put down 6 of her match-high 10 kills in the third set, and the Wildcats weathered Downers Grove South’s outstanding defensive effort for a 25-22, 19-25, 25-16 win in Naperville.

With Neuqua leading 17-13 in the third, Novak put down kills for 5 of the Wildcats’ next 6 points for a commanding 23-15 advantage.

“She took the court in Game 3 and decided that she was going to lead her team,” Neuqua coach Kelly Simon said. “Toward the end we were laughing on the bench about it being the Leighanne Novak show.”

Three of those were relatively easy putaways because of Downers Grove South overpasses.

“It feels amazing to get those,” Novak said. “We just had to keep communicating and push to the end.”

Simon admired the gritty effort put forth by her opponent. Back-row specialists Kelly Bowe and Carlie Serritella, in particular, were all over the court for the Mustangs.

Down a set, Downers Grove South rolled out to an 8-1 lead in the second and led the whole way.

The Mustangs led 11-9 in the third on a Kristen Zemke kill before a 4-0 Neuqua run started by a Callie Huebener kill.

“I have to give Downers South a ton of credit — they came out fighting and battling from the first point to the last,” Simon said, “and we didn’t until the third game. It was a wake-up call. That team dug like crazy. It was phenomenal to watch.”

Downers Grove South (3-2) posted rare back-to-back losing seasons in 2009 and 2010, but the Mustangs seem intent on flipping the script this fall.

The Mustangs already have beaten two teams that they lost to last year — Downers Grove North and Wheaton Warrenville South. Neuqua would have been a third.

“Our girls have to learn to close matches,” Mustangs coach Trisha Kurth said. “Our defense was great. We’re trying to play smarter volleyball. We’re not big and tall, we don’t all play for Sports Performance and Alliance 18 club. We have to win because we play defense and we’re smart.”

Huebener had 9 kills for Neuqua (8-5), as did Brooke Antenen. Taylor McKeown pitched in 7. Antenen and McKeown both had clever two-hand kills into the vacant back corner of Downers Grove South’s defense that eased the Wildcats ahead 13-11 in the third set, a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

“I’m glad that Downers South challenged us the way that we played and forced us to play,” Simon said, “because we gotta be ready to play every night we take the court. Had we not stepped up in Game 3 and played the way we are capable, they would have beaten us.”