Girls volleyball: Warren's 'Comeback Kids' win regional title
One point away from a decisive set in a regional final, down four. And Warren girls volleyball coach Julie Filippo never panicked.
"Shoot, we were down 10-1 in one game and came back and won," Filippo said.
Why would Warren worry, especially considering the versatile and reliable Abby Berkowicz was trotting back to the service line?
"It helps when I got Berkowicz serving," Filippo said. "She's really good. She hits her zones like no ones's business."
Truth is, Berkowicz enjoys those situations with so much at stake.
"I do," Warren's senior setter/opposite said. "I feel like I perform my best. I know I can just do my job and get it done."
As she has done in the past, Berkowicz delivered, and so did her teammates Thursday night. The Blue Devils averted a third set to beat Lakes 25-23, 26-24 and win the Class 4A Marian Central regional championship in Woodstock, earning themselves a berth in the Grayslake Central sectional. No. 4 Warren (30-7) will play top-seeded Prairie Ridge (26-10) in Monday's 5:30 p.m. semifinal.
No. 5 Lakes, which went undefeated in capturing the Northern Lake County Conference championship, finished 24-8. The Eagles were on the verge of winning the second set, up 24-20 after Warren hit a ball wide.
"I think it's a learning opportunity," Lakes coach Kate Cheek said. "It's game point. You get a good pass. How do you put the ball away? How do you execute?"
Dana Lundtveit's block got the ball back to Warren down 24-21 and sent Berkowicz back to serve. Her fourth ace of the match cut the Blue Devils' deficit to 24-23, and three unforced errors in a row by Lakes ended it.
Lundtveit finished with 6 kills and 2 blocks, Ella White had 6 kills as well for Warren, and Ora Cohen notched 4 kills.
"We've been the 'Comeback Kids' for the last two years," Filippo said. "Coming back from (24-20) isn't anything new with this group."
"Every game, we just keep pushing," said Berkowicz, who served 16 of 18, while adding 15 assists and 3 kills. "Even if we're down by 10 points, we just push our hardest."
Lakes also enjoyed a 19-14 lead in the opening set, before Warren reeled off seven straight points, including back-to-back aces by Berkowicz. Eastern Illinois-bound Keelan Bell put away an attack, but the Blue Devils won the next point to win the set.
"They're a great team," Lakes sophomore setter Devinn Bell said. "They fought the whole time. They did not let a single ball hit the ground. They played really well, so I think they definitely deserved it."
Bell dished out 17 assists and added a pair of blocks. Kelli Rettig and Paule Ceneac had 7 and 6 kills, respectively, for the Eagles. Ashley Smith tallied 3 kills, 6 digs and 2 aces, and Abby Vanderwall notched 11 digs.
Lakes will graduate six seniors and lose the 5-10 Devinn Bell as well. Her family is moving to Texas, where her dad accepted a job transfer. She will miss her school and her teammates.
"We're all so close," said Bell, who also started as a freshman on varsity. "We hang out together outside of practice. We go to football games together. We do everything together. The seniors really helped me transition to high school. They built me up as a volleyball player, and I'm forever indebted to them. They're amazing girls."
The Eagles were an emotional group after the loss as they huddled off to the side.
"I didn't expect the tears to come right away, but they turned on the waterworks," Cheek said. "They played tough. If we didn't have a few of those seniors all season long, we wouldn't have had the season we had. Congratulations to them. ... The seniors really gave it all they had. They were all starters. They all deserved their spot."