Benet springs Autumnfest win
Benet's match against Mother McAuley Saturday could almost be described as a microcosm of the Redwings' season.
A shaky start shaping up to be a fantastic finish.
The Redwings erased early deficits in both games to beat Mother McAuley 25-23, 25-19 and win the Autumnfest tournament at Glenbard East.
“I think we're becoming more of a team, said Benet junior Jenna Jendryk, “and it's showing in how we play. We wanted this championship today. We weren't going to lose it, even when we got down.
The Redwings advanced to the championship match for the first time in coach Brad Baker's four seasons at Benet by beating St. Charles East 25-20, 25-14 in the quarterfinals, then defending champion Joliet Catholic 25-20, 23-25, 25-19.
Both wins were Benet's second over the Saints and Angels this week, after the Redwings (26-6) dropped their first meeting this season with both to JCA in last week's Mizuno Cup final.
Needless to say Benet's 4-3 start to the season seems a distant memory.
“We are starting to play much better and to win a tournament like this shows that, Baker said. “Our challenge is getting the girls to still have the same frame of mind, to continue to want to get better over the next month. We think we can.
Benet spotted McAuley the first 5 points of the championship before coming back to tie it 8-8 on a Jendryk ace. It was 15-12 McAuley when the Redwings rolled off 5 straight points, Jendryk throwing down 3 of her match-high 10 kills in the run.
McAuley (23-6) rallied from down 22-19 to tie it 22-22, but a Mighty Macs service error was followed by blocks from Meghan Haggerty and Lara Ontko for the game.
McAuley got out to a 6-1 advantage in Game 2, but that didn't last either as Benet tied it 10-10 on an Alyson Farm ace. At 11-11 the Redwings grabbed the lead for good with 5 straight points. Tournament MVP Ontko put down 4 kills in a row, then teamed with McKenzie Kuhn for a block and 16-11 lead.
“Benet's serving was really tough and our passers broke down. They typically don't break down, said Mother McAuley coach Jen DeJarld, whose team was playing in the Autumnfest final for the third straight year. “We were out of system and when we're out of system it makes it hard for our hitters to be effective.
Farm had 9 kills, Ontko 7 and Haggerty 5 for Benet.
“Right now we're able to spread the ball around, Baker said. “Our goal is when we see the stat sheet to not have anybody lead the team in kills, but for everybody to have the same amount so nobody can focus on just one player.
“We knew coming in that today could be a very good day, and we were looking forward to that. The reason we play a tough schedule and play in tough tournaments is to have opportunities like today. All these teams coming in are playing good volleyball we knew there'd be no gimmes and we'd have to earn it. And we did.
McAuley beat West Chicago 25-18, 24-26, 25-14 in the other semifinal, handing the second-ranked Wildcats their first loss of the season. West Chicago (26-2), the fourth seed in the tournament, then dropped the third-place match to Joliet Catholic 25-20, 25-16.
Emily Paschke had 22 kills, Kathy Fletcher 18 kills and 10 blocks and Julia Conard 11 kills and 23 digs for West Chicago over three matches Saturday. The Wildcats beat Lemont 25-20, 25-21 in the quarterfinals.
“I think we really needed this tournament to see where we fit in with a lot of the other top teams and see what we could do, Conard said. “I don't think we played our best game, but we held in there and did what we could. It was a good experience, to see that there are better teams out there and we need to pick up our game.
St. Charles East (23-9) came back after losing to Benet to beat Providence 25-22, 25-16, then ran out of gas in losing the fifth-place match to Prairie Ridge 15-25, 25-16, 25-18. Meghan Niski had 10 kills and 22 digs for the Saints against Prairie Ridge, 10 kills and 6 digs against Providence and 11 kills versus Benet. Sam Szarmach added 12 kills in the fifth-place match.
“We had a really good tournament we were just tuckered out at the end of that last match, St. Charles East coach Jennie Kull said. “That first game against Prairie Ridge we played the way we know how to play. Meghan was named to the all-tournament team, and rightfully so. Her defense was great, and offensively she worked really hard and did a nice job all weekend.
“We played well this weekend. At this point we just got to regroup. The best thing we take away is we're back in a good rhythm and playing the way we're used to.