Hinsdale South ends it for Benet
Morgan Howard had high hopes for her move to Hinsdale South but this scene surely surpassed them all.
Howard, who transferred from Montini for her senior year, smashed 12 kills and the third-seeded Hornets upset No. 1 Benet 29-31, 28-26, 30-28 to win the Class 4A Romeoville sectional.
A year ago Howard was playing for a team that bowed out in regionals. Thursday she celebrated Hinsdale South's first sectional title since 2006.
“My teammates and I, we would talk about this,” Howard said, “but it's a huge stretch. During the summer everyone thinks they're going to get here, but the chances of it actually happening, coming from my old team being out the first regional game and now here I am winning sectionals it's something I have never experienced. And I am so grateful.”
It's been a remarkable ride for the Hornets (33-6), who won just 16 matches a year ago. An eclectic bunch includes Howard; fellow middle Melissa Nava, who missed all of last season with a back injury, had 11 kills against Benet; add in a sophomore at setter (Sharon Anderson) and another sophomore Jessica Brezwyn was unstoppable Thursday with 14 kills.
Then there is senior outside Danielle Romeo, who went to a boarding school in Oregon her freshman year and endured two up-and-down seasons at Hinsdale South before blossoming into one of the area's best players this fall.
“Danielle, I've known her since we were 13 playing club together,” Darien native Howard said, “and she told me, ‘You have to come over here.' And then I talked to coach (Lisa) Martinez and decided that I was going to make the move. Definitely a smart choice. I knew we were going to go far.”
Unranked coming into the year, the Hornets this week knocked off returning sectional finalists Hinsdale Central and Benet teams with a combined nine Division I recruits on their respective rosters.
It was a bitter end to Benet's season, in many ways a microcosm of its season.
The Redwings, ranked seventh nationally entering the season, started 4-3 but rebounded to win 12 straight matches and 16 of 17 entering Thursday. Benet (32-7) turned away four Hinsdale South game points just to take Game 1. A Hornets service error, Alyson Farm block and one of Jenna Jendryk's 11 kills gave Benet first blood in a marathon match.
The Redwings rallied from deficits of 22-17 in the second game and 19-15 in the third.
“It's mainly a feeling of disappointment, because for all of us our big goal was to go to state,” Benet senior setter Kaitlyn King. “It's disappointing that it had to end so soon, but it was a great season.”
Ultimately, the Redwings were their worst enemy.
Benet came all the way back in Game 2 to take a 26-25 lead, a Jendryk kill giving the Redwings a sideout and a Jendryk ace pushing her team to match point. But after a Hornets timeout a serve sailed long, Brezwyn put down a kill and Benet committed an error on Hinsdale's serve for game point.
Benet had 2 more service errors at potential match points in Game 3.
“Our first ball contact was not great tonight, without a doubt,” said Benet coach Brad Baker, whose team was denied a third straight sectional championship. “You gotta give credit to the kids for fighting through because serve receive and serving tonight wasn't great. We were fighting ourselves all match but we never gave up.”
Just like on Tuesday against Hinsdale Central, as their opponent appeared to get tentative in a deciding Game 3 Martinez's Hornets got stronger.
“It's because I beat the holy snot out of these kids day in and day out in practice,” Martinez said. “If this was a horse race, we'd be Secretariat at the end of matches.”