Oregon ends St. Edward's season
OREGON St. Edward knew Sara Jordan was going to get the volleyball a lot.
The Green Wave just never found an answer for the Oregon senior outside hitter. Jordan finished with 11 kills as the host Hawks downed St. Edward 25-18, 25-19 Saturday to win their own Class 2A regional championship.
“She'd hit a lot across and them come back with a line shot,” Green Wave senior Kristina Kolodydzk said. “She was placing the ball very well.”
With St. Edward's season hanging in the balance and Oregon up 18-17 in Game 2, the Hawks went to Jordan on 4 straight sets, with the fourth resulting in a kill. St. Edward had led 15-11 before Oregon went on a 14-4 run to close out the game. Jordan finished with 3 kills during the run, while Randi Wilken added a pair of kills.
“(Wilken) surprised us,” said Green Wave assistant coach Kyle Due, subbing for new mom and head coach Jaime Dovichi. “Every time she touched the ball, she got a kill. We knew it was going to be Jordan or (Maisie Mahoney). That's what we prepared for.”
St. Edward (12-21) battled with Oregon up until the final points of Game 2. The Green Wave got out to a good start after falling behind 4-0. St. Edward tied the game at 7 when Sarah Norman (4 kills, 11 digs) tipped the ball into an opening in the Hawks' defense.
The teams tied again at 8 when Katie Ayello (14 digs) dug the ball for a point. The Green Wave would then go up 14-9, their biggest lead of the match, when Rena Ranallo got a kill. Ranallo was starting for her sister, Enza Ranallo, who was not present for the Green Wave.
Without Enza Ranallo, St. Edward did try several different rotations to try to combat Jordan's outside hitting.
“I tried switching our lineup as much as I could,” Due said. “(Oregon) did a good job adjusting.”
The Hawks also did a god job of adjusting during the closing points of the first game as well. St. Edward was in control until Jordan tied the game at 12. The Hawks would go up 13-12 and St. Edward would not regain a lead again, coming within 1 point twice.
After trailing just 18-17, Oregon went on a 5-0 run to go up 23-17.
“They were just putting the ball where it needed to go,” Kolodydzk said. “They were finding our holes. They were doing everything right.”
Stephanie Igielski led the Green Wave with 6 kills, while Anne Kelly finished with 9 assists and Margie Haggenjos added 5.