Stevenson lose? Not with Hughes

As a junior, Stevenson's Amber Hughes played sparingly at outside hitter.

During club season, she moved to libero. She quickly took to her new position.

"It felt right ever since," she said.

Hughes, a senior, played one of her best matches of the season Thursday to help Stevenson defeat Glenbrook North 25-13, 25-22 in a regional semifinal at Lake Zurich. The Patriots play No. 1 seed Lake Zurich at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Hughes finished with 21 digs.

"Oh my Gosh," said Stevenson coach Tim Crow, when asked about Hughes' performance. "She played a phenomenal game. She did a good job of taking charge. She made big play after big play."

Glenbrook North, the No. 9 seed, performed at a much higher level in the second game against No. 7 Stevenson. Glenbrook North led 20-16 late, but the Patriots stayed calm and controlled the final points.

"We've grown a lot as a team," Hughes said. "We're not afraid and we're communicating a lot better."

Crow liked the way the Patriots responded down the stretch.

"We've played a lot of close games," he said. "They had a steady 2- to 3-point lead throughout the second game, but we were able to make the needed adjustments and string a few points together."

Freshman Rachel Baader led the way with 8 kills. Junior middle blocker Carlee Berland and sophomore Mackenzie Kurth had 7 and 4 kills, respectively. Baader (10), Hughes (9)and Kurth (9) combined for 28 service points.

Senior Anastasia Borozenets had 2 solo blocks.

"We're working together more and blocking better," she said.

Both of those attributes will come in handy Saturday against Lake Zurich. The Bears defeated Stevenson in a regular season conference match. They finished league play with an undefeated record.

"We have to be more accountable about where their setters and hitters are," Crow said. "You can only dig for so long. We'll have to block better because they have so many hitters who can hammer the ball."