Girls volleyball: Loyola handles Larkin
After getting past Rolling Meadows with relative ease in its opening match of the Class 4A Larkin regional on Tuesday, top-seeded Loyola Academy took another step toward a trip downstate on Thursday.
Fighting off a pesky Larkin team, Loyola used strong serving at the end of each game to clinch a 25-15, 25-15 win for a Class 4A regional title.
The Ramblers will face off against a team they have already seen this year in Evanston Township, which beat Lake Park on Thursday, in the 5:30 p.m. sectional semifinal at Maine East on Tuesday.
"We went to three games against (Evanston) last time we saw them. We will be as ready and prepared for them as we were tonight for Larkin," Ramblers' coach Mark Chang said.
Finding themselves trailing 10-7 early in Game 1 Thursday, the Ramblers (24-9) got hot on the serve and took control of the game from there, ending on a 16-5 run thanks in large part to the service of outside hitter Christina Reed.
Already on top 16-15, Reed did not let the Royals serve the rest of the match, collecting 2 aces and 3 kills herself and letting her teammates do the rest.
"Christina has really shown some guts here in the last leg of our season and coming into the playoffs," Chang said about his senior outside hitter. "She was taking a nice big approach from the back row, and when you have that as part of your offense a lot of things open up for you."
Reed would continue that dominance from the back row in Game 2, collecting 3 more kills. She finished the match with 7 kills, as did outside hitter Olivia Van Zelst.
Getting 5 kills in the second game alone, Van Zelst also had a pair of aces, including the final point for the title. Both Reed and Van Zelst were set up all night by Katie Randolph, who finished with 15 assists.
As one of only two seniors on the team, the Royals (12-25)' Amelia Gill tried to keep her team alive for just a little bit longer, but it was not to be.
Gill, who led the team with 5 kills, kept two big rallies alive diving after balls for Larkin as it tried to fight its way back and eventually took the lead early in the second game before falling behind.
With there being just a pair of seniors on the team, Larkin coach Henry Graack knows his young team gained a lot of experience but will have to keep working hard to take that next step.
"(Our seniors) left us in a good place, I think. The other girls saw what it takes and I told them to use that for motivation going into the weight room to prepare for next year," Graack said.
Coming out of the gate strong for Game 2, matching the Ramblers point for point early in the contest, Gill and fellow senior Danielle Newquist (3 kills, 1 ace), and sophomore captain Natalie Kofie (9 assists) all contributed to the Royals' effort on the front line while Ella Roland (3 aces, 2 digs) took up the service game.
The lead was not to last, however, as more balls hit by the Ramblers started to find holes and graze just off the hands of Larkin's players. With the game almost over and the Royals trailing 22-14, Graack called a timeout to have one last in-game meeting with his team.
"At that point I told them win or lose, make sure they play the rest of the game with no regrets, and end the season with no regrets," Graack said. "Win or lose you don't want to go out thinking you could have done something better."