IC falls just short in marathon match

There was something fitting about the inflatable hammer being held by Keith School's Jordon Haverly after Monday's South Beloit Class 1A girls volleyball supersectional.

The 6-foot-1 senior from the Rockford college prep school hammered down 24 kills against Immaculate Conception to lead the way to a 25-21, 22-25, 28-26 marathon win -- and the school's first ever trip to state.

The Cougars will face Edwards County at 10:30 a.m. at Redbird Arena in Normal in the state semifinals on Friday.

"The kids from South Beloit gave (the hammer) to me," Haverly said. "I'm glad that we all got together (and made it to state). I don't care about my stats."

Haverly was also at the service line for the Cougars' final 2 points that were both converted on kills by Morgan Phillips.

But this was hardly a walkover.

The Knights never gave up and responded to a boisterous cheering section.

In the second game, IC led most of the way thanks to service runs by Kelly Mulligan and Meg Kowieski.

A kill by Danielle Remy (10 kills) put Game 2 away.

In the final game, the Knights' team play produced several 3- and 4-point advantages. Even after Keith got back into it, Cathrine Guido strung together 5 straight serves and tied the game at 23-23.

Kills by Mary Kate Manion (13 kills) and Remy down the stretch were a testament to the Knights' guts. They really did never give up.

"It's really disappointing," Remy said. "We worked really, really hard to get here. We played really well. Our whole entire team is really determined. No one ever wants to give up.

"We knew it was going to be a tough match. We were just hoping we could beat all their players. We showed that we're not easy to beat."

"It was a tough match but it was a good match as supersectionals should be," said IC coach Jean Field, whose Knights finished 28-12. "They played with heart. They could've easily after that first match (given up). But they played hard every point. They played with a lot of enthusiasm. I'm proud of them. It was a great group to work with."

Mary Cheng added 6 kills for the Knights, while setters Abby West (23 assists) and Meg Kowieski (14 assists) were also crucial.