Girls volleyball: Timothy Christian remains hopeful despite defeat
It was a not a win, but Timothy Christian did play well Monday night in its new field house.
The Trojans hope that some continued strong play will allow the Trojans a chance to play in the upcoming Class 3A volleyball sectional to be played at the impressive new middle school facility.
The Trojans came up short in a 25-22, 25-20 battle with Metro Suburban Conference Red Division champion Chicago Christian, but they played solid volleyball against the 30-win Knights, who are contenders in Class 2A.
"It was good volleyball. There were a lot of really good volleys," said Trojans setter Tracy Westra, one of five players honored on senior night. "I'm glad we played that way because if we keep playing that well we'll do well in regionals."
Timothy Christian, which placed third in Class 2A in 2015, will open the postseason next week in a Class 3A regional at Fenwick.
"It would be really fun to play sectionals here," Trojans coach Scott Piersma said. "This was a great atmosphere tonight - this is a phenomenal place. If we can get sectionals here we know we can repeat that … . It would be wonderful to play here and do a little more breaking in of the new place if you will."
The 1,200-seat sports facility for high school athletics is part of a recently opened building that also houses seventh-grade and eighth-grade classrooms adjacent to Timothy Christian High School. On Monday there was a big crowd for the match featuring two of the top teams in the league.
The Knights (30-5, 12-0), led by tall, talented middles Danielle Tyson and Brooke Veldman, took a 16-11 lead in the first set following one of four blocks from Tyson. But Timothy Christian fought back and drew even at 18, 19, 20 and 21 before the champs closed the opener after Tyson soared and slammed down a perfect set from Jordan Dryfhout.
The second set was tight throughout, and the Trojans (22-12, 9-3) trailed just 18-16 after a kill from Rachel Stoll. But Chicago Christian came up with just enough big plays down the stretch to complete the sweep. Veldman's sixth kill of the night closed out the match.
"Coming into their gym on senior night, we knew it was going to be a rougher one," Knights coach Karen Van Assen said. "I think that we're pretty well prepared for the state playoffs. Their setter (Tracy Westra) wasn't there the first time we played them and she's pretty great. That makes a difference because the team has more confidence with her there."
Westra, who was out with a sprained ankle when the two teams played earlier this year, likes the way the Trojans are playing.
"After my ankle sprain I was trying to get back in the rhythm. I feel like I'm getting better now and working on more consistent, faster sets to my hitters so there's not such a big block up every time and so we can spread out the offense more," said Westra, who had 14 assists, 8 kills and 4 digs.
"That's a really, really good team and we played very well," said Piersma, whose attack was led by Heidi Westra's 9 kills. "It was good to see us come out ready. It's good to see some positives before the postseason because if we play like this again I think we'll have a really good chance (to advance)."