Batavia buries Schaumburg in Game 3
Turns out veteran Batavia coach Lori Trippi-Payne doesn’t just know her volleyball, she’s a bit of a college hoops junkie.
“We all watch NCAA basketball,” Trippi-Payne said. “Where are the biggest upsets? Ten and seven, right? You never know. That’s why you play the game.”
No. 10 Schaumburg had its chance for that upset Tuesday night at the Class 4A Glenbard East regional, pushing seventh-seed Batavia to a deciding third game.
Batavia never let the Saxons get close from there, using a 15-3 surge in the middle of the game to seal a 25-15, 22-25, 25-10 victory.
Batavia (23-13) will try to avenge an earlier loss to St. Charles East (30-6) when the teams meet at 6 p.m. Thursday for the regional championship. Schaumburg’s season ends at 19-18.
“Our girls like a challenge when their backs are against the wall,” Trippi-Payne said. “Our girls didn’t look tired in Game 3. They looked fresh.”
Sophomore outside Heather Meyer, slowed by a shoulder injury that forced her to tip the last three weeks, was feeling better Tuesday and led both teams with 12 kills. She had five in both the Game 1 and Game 3 wins.
“They came back with a lot of energy in Game 2 we didn’t have,” Meyer said. “Then the third game we were ready. We didn’t want our season to end.
“They blocked pretty well, we just found ways to get around it. I was really pumped tonight to start swinging and go all out.”
As she has all year Marquette-bound senior Mary Nilles did a little of everything for the Bulldogs. She finished with 26 assists, 4 kills and 7 blocks.
“The third game we were focused on setting our own tempo, swinging away on our own balls and picking up balls,” Niles said. “We played a real solid game.”
Schaumburg grabbed its only lead of Game 3 at 1-0 on a kill from Bria Hailey. Kristen Koncelik (9 kills, 7 blocks) took a set from Niles and put away a kill to tie the game, then Niles blocked a shot to give the Bulldogs the lead for good.
Batavia hit on all cylinders in the middle of the game, turning an 8-6 game into a 23-9 lead. Libero Stephanie Kinane had 2 kills from the back row and an ace during the stretch as nothing Schaumburg coach Jeanette Pancratz tried to do could slow Batavia.
“I’m proud of how they adjusted in the match,” Pancratz said. “It’s unfortunate we didn’t have that same intensity in the third game. We knew what they were going to do, we knew the strengths of their team, it’s just a matter of execution. They executed better with their game than we did. It was tough to stop their momentum.”
Kelly Koutnik led the Saxons with 10 kills. Meghan Falsey had 13 assists and Samantha Mellert 11 assists.
After Batavia had control throughout most of Game 1, the Saxons made it a match in a back-and-forth Game 2. The Saxons raced to a quick 5-0 lead. Batavia rallied to lead 10-9 and the teams were tied at 15 before Schaumburg scored five straight with Hailey serving to take control.
“Give Schaumburg credit, they found some of our weaknesses and made some plays,” Trippi-Payne said. “Their offense was really on in Game 2.”
Schaumburg struggled at times with Batavia’s serve. Meghan Fabian fired 3 of Batavia’s 7 aces. The Saxons also had 8 service errors.
“It became a game of serve and serve-receive,” Pancratz said. “It typically comes down to that. That is the name of the game.”
Briahna Havis led Batavia’s defense with 8 digs. Trippi-Payne credited her team’s conditioning work and the opponents they play for how the team came through under pressure Tuesday.
“We rely on the tough competition, tough schedule, it reflects in games like this,” Trippi-Payne said. “Our practices reflect in games like this. Our practices are hard from start to finish. We push each other every day. It does make a difference.”