Larkin dumps Elgin again

Elgin girls volleyball coach Scott Stewart thought his team had one of its best blocking matches of the season Tuesday.

Larkin coach Marcin Dybka saw how effectively the Maroons were defending at the net and made his team have a simple adjustment. He advised his team to tip the ball over the block instead of hitting through it.

The strategy worked as the Royals rallied past Elgin for the second time this season, winning 22-25, 25-17, 25-18.

“The first game we were trying to (hit cross court) and getting stuffed,” Dybka said. “I told them to tip right over there blockers or hit to the line.”

Elgin (3-14) trailed 17-13 in the opening game before going on an 8-0 run to take control. A Monica Stockman kill tied the game at 17-17. A Rachel Roth kill gave the Maroons their first lead, 18-17. Hope Demel and Elyssa Helker followed with blocks and Helker’s kill capped the run at 21-17. A Larkin service error gave the Maroons the Game 1 victory.

Larkin (5-11) led the second game 13-12 before going on a 5-1 run to take a 18-13 lead. Olivia Kofie and Brianna Stewart each had 2 kills and Piper Johnson added one during the run. Anna Gaston had kills for the final 3 points as the Royals took Game 2.

“What killed us was those little tips and roll shots over our blockers,” Scott Stewart said. “We were doing a really good job blocking and they figured that out. They started tipping over.”

The third game was all Larkin, which jumped out to a 9-2 lead and increased it to 18-5 following three consecutive Elgin errors. A kill from Johnson gave the Royals a 24-12 lead. The Maroons saved 6 match points before a Jill Casebeer tip kills ended the match.

“We got anxious about winning that we forgot that one point can still turn into lots of mistakes,” said Larkin sophomore Brianna Stewart, who had a match-high 11 kills.

Casebeer added 5 kills for the Royals. Gaston had 4 kills. Lexi Smithberg finished with 25 assists and 10 digs. Brianna Stewart and Kofie each had 3 blocks. Katie Plantz had 19 digs.

Helker led the Maroons with 7 kills and added 3 blocks. Stockman finished with 4 kills and 5 blocks. Demel had 19 assists and 3 blocks.