Rosary turns back ACC

It was the best effort the Aurora Central Catholic girls volleyball team gave against rival Rosary in years.

Still, the best was not good enough, as the Royals were able to put away the Chargers 25-15, 25-17 in a Suburban Catholic Conference match at ACC on Monday.

"This may really not be our big rival anymore - it's more St. Francis - but they still want to beat us," said Rosary coach Lisa Kasper. "It was a little too close and it shouldn't be that way, not with the talent we have."

"Homecoming week was a good time for us to draw these guys," said ACC coach Randy Hewitt. "The (fans) made a lot of noise, and the girls were inspired by the freshmen and sophomores and the way they played (the freshmen beat the Royals and the sophomores lost in three). In the losing effort, we played really, really well."

After 4 early ties in Game 1, the Royals began to pull away by scoring 4 of the next 5 points. After a Rosary error, the Royals scored the next 7 of 8 points for a 19-11 lead.

They closed out the game by scoring the final 3 points on a Lindsey Weber kill, an ACC error and a block from Amelia Wegman.

Rosary (11-6, 4-2) never trailed in Game 2, which was highlighted by a 9-point Royals run in the middle of the game.

Leading 4-2, Rosary scored its points behind Karen Matic's serving, ACC errors and kills from Lindsey Weber, who finished with a match-high 12 kills. ACC (10-10, 1-5) got within 6 points, but the Royals ended the match with one of Kelly Hogan's 5 kills.

"I think we could have played a lot better," Matic said. "(ACC) fought back and they were so excited to be here and play us. We really didn't match their intensity level."