Schaumburg battles back against Conant

Sitting in the stands, former Hersey and DePaul basketball great Andy Pancratz couldn't lose Wednesday night while watching a girls volleyball match in the Conant gymnasium between the host Cougars and Schaumburg.

And neither team wanted to lose in the second set.

The Cougars, coached by Andy's daughter Drewann (in her second season), and the Saxons, directed by Andy's wife Jeanette, were deadlocked 12 times in the last 26 points.

Finally, an ace by the Cougars senior Lauren Perri gave the hosts an exhausting 28-26 exhausting triumph.

But the defending Mid-Suburban West champion Saxons had plenty of breath left for the final set and pulled away to a 25-17, 26-28, 25-12 victory in the division opener.

"Pancratz vs. Pancratz, it's serious," said Saxons senior middle blocker Lexi Ross, a serious blocker despite her 5-foot-5 height (she had 3 blocks with 6 kills).

"It's a nice little battle," added Ross, who also plays basketball. "It's fun playing (Conant) because we're all friends off the court."

Finding the court with the most kills was talented Saxons senior Abbie Rahn, who is back after missing the final three weeks of the 2014 season after suffering a hand injury while giving extra effort to diving for a ball headed out of bounds during the Saxons Invite.

Rahn's effort on Wednesday was A-plus caliber, as the she put down a match-high 12 kills with 18 digs and 3 aces.

"Abbie did a nice job," said Schaumburg veteran coach Jeanette Pancratz, who is 8 shy of 800 wins for her 36-year coaching career (which includes nine years at Resurrection). "This had to be fun to watch as a spectator. As a coach, you want to see your girls be able to put it away."

The Saxons (5-4, 1-0) finally put it away in third set, pulling away behind some strong service work from junior Jordyn Harberts (11-of-11 serving, 14 setting assists), Ross and Rahn.

Sophomore Morgan Sterrett had a pair of kills early in the set as the Saxons built a 6-2 advantage.

Schaumburg raced ahead 14-4 when junior Julia Spitelli (4 blocks) blocked an overpass.

The Saxons' lead grew to 17-5 on a kill by Rahn.

"When I broke my hand last season I couldn't finish off the season," Rahn said. "It's really good to be back with the team. We have a lot of potential. And I feel we can go far."

The Saxons showed that in the third set, when they led start to finish.

Senior Christina Candotti (11-fo-12 serving, 2 aces, 19 assists) put down a second attack kill to made it 23-10.

The Saxons gained the penultimate point on a hitting error and service point from Ross, and capped off the match with a crosscourt kill by Gerber.

"It's all about connecting," Rahn said. "I feel we play real well together as a team but when we are connecting, we are spot-on and are a great team."

"We have our ups and downs," Ross added. "But we know we have to pick each other up and push to the finish."

The Cougars were trailing 7-1 when Rahn served an ace but they charged back and got to within 11-10 on a kill by Rachel Delanois, who put down 11 for the match.

Other top attackers for the Cougars (1-7, 0-1) were Jorie Wachal (3 kills), Lauren Perri (2) and sophomore setter Kristina Loznjakovic (2). Ester Cho had 9 digs while Loznjakovic and Perri each served 2 aces.

"Both teams battled hard but it really came down to unforced errors," said Drewann Pancratz. "In the first set, we made a ton. They struggled a little in Set 2 and then they served real well in Set 3 and we had a few too many unforced errors again."

But the potential is promising for the Cougars.

"We keep telling our girls they have proved that we're right there," Drewann said. "Our success is based on our consistency and limiting the unforced errors. The energy is great but when we hit the third set Schaumburg came out strong - and unfortunately, we did not."

After Drewann's club posted a three-set victory in the 2014 Early Bird Invite, Jeanette's Saxons have now won three in a row over the Cougars.

"It's a lot of fun, a family outing," Drewann said. "It's a great opportunity coaching against my mother, something that doesn't happen a lot. But it's really all about the kids."