St. Charles North Stars rallies to beat Bartlett in 3
Dropping the first game to Bartlett Saturday in the Class 4A St. Charles North regional final didn't make the North Stars worry - it only made them mad.
St. Charles North responded with extra intensity in the final two games, and that - plus an improved block at the net - carried the North Stars to a 17-25, 25-20, 25-20 victory over Bartlett.
St. Charles North (25-11) will play St. Charles East in the Geneva sectional semifinals at 6 p.m. Tuesday. The North Stars lost to the Saints in three games earlier this season.
"We were all angry," St. Charles North senior Karlie Giesler said. "We just didn't perform how we wanted to. The second game we really pulled our act together."
After the fifth tie of Game 1 at 11, Bartlett (24-12) slowly and surely pulled away. The combination of the one-two punch of Carly Sahagian and Jacki Gulczynski combined with more North Star mistakes than usual opened an 18-13 lead.
Sahagian took a set from Alyssa Cazzato and put it away for a 24-17 lead, then a North Stars violation ended Game 1 - and led to an attitude adjustment in Game 2.
"It was about the attitude," North Stars coach Lindsey Hawkins said. "We came out a little hesitant. It wasn't about making adjustments, it was about having that fire and passion to go make every play count. They did it and I'm really proud of them."
Bartlett, who lost to the North Stars for the third time this year, grabbed an early 7-3 lead in Game 2. The North Stars caught them at 10 and then took control on Giesler's 5-point service run.
Allie Van Dril continued her dominating play at the net with 2 of her 5 blocks on back-to-back points for a 22-16 lead. Jill Stolzenburg took a quick set in the middle for a kill on game point.
After falling behind in the first two games, St. Charles North never trailed in Game 3. The North Stars never led by more than 5 points, and they kept their composure when Bartlett cut the lead to 21-20.
Katie Fuerst's kills on the next two points made it 23-20 and helped the junior redeem herself for an earlier shot she missed.
"I took a couple tries and messed up a couple times and I tried to fix that," Fuerst said. "I knew I had to get myself back in the game. I tried really hard and made those shots. I knew I could do it."
The match ended on a Bartlett hitting error, the Hawks' 12th of the game. "We played a heck of a first game, we took it to them, made a lot of good plays," Bartlett coach Brandon Mueller said. "I thought the last two games we played well. They just made a couple more plays than us and that happens. I thought it was a great match overall."
The Tennessee-bound Sahagian led the Hawks with 17 kills and Gulczynski added 11. Giesler's 10 kills led the North Stars, who received consistent setting from Olivia Schneider and Sarah Clarkson, solid passing from Jen Ask and Miranda Coello and a balanced offensive attack to offset Sahagian's power.
"We knew Carly Sahagian was the best player on the team but we weren't going to be afraid of her," Giesler said. "We said, 'We are all good and they have one good player and one good player can't beat all of us.'"