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Girls volleyball: Warren, Benet surive upset-minded St. Charles North

Benet had to dig deeper than seemingly initially anticipated.

St. Charles North had a potential upset on their minds.

The North Stars, who were missing three starters, including star senior outside hitter Katie Scherer with a right arm injury for the remainder of the season, almost pulled it off. Aniya Warren and the Redwings outlasted St. Charles North 25-12, 21-25, 25-17 in a three-set thriller on Wednesday.

Benet, who hasn't lost since Aug. 26 - a span of 11 victories - sprinted to a dominant first set victory with the North Stars visibly finding little rhythm.

In a back-and-forth second set, tied 18-18, the North Stars blasted ahead with a 22-18 lead behind a Mia McCall kill, an Ava Kashuba ace, a Benet attack error and a block from Sidney Wright. After a subsequent North Stars service error, SCN survived a furious volley that ended with a side out, kill from Alex Bardouniotis and another block by Wright for the 25-21 victory and staved off a sweep.

"There was a lull [in that second set]," said Warren, a junior libero and Indiana recruit. "I feel like when we come back; sometimes we're gonna have lulls. We're not a perfect team. We're never going to be perfect. So, when we come back, we always have to fight back harder. ... If it's not one of our best games, we always have to find something that works and keep going and keep pushing."

"Because, I feel if we're giving 100% something is going to end up falling," Warren continued. "If we're not giving up on anything ... it just could be a bad game then."

In set three, the North Stars (10-8) vaulted ahead 13-8, but the Redwings (16-1) punched back with an 8-0 run to gain back the momentum. From there, connecting on their hits and tidy defense up front pushed them to the finish line.

"We started to find a rhythm with each other and playing," Warren said. "It was just like 'let's go focus on us. Let's not worry about what they're doing.' Obviously, some good plays are going to come from a lot of their players. They might sail a ball on the 10 foot line or get a big kill, but at the end of the day, we have players that can do the same. It's all about confidence."

"We obviously have shown we can play better than what we did in the second," Benet coach Brad Baker said.

Benet was paced by six kills from Audrey Asleson, while Ava Novak had four kills.

Besides Scherer, who North Stars coach Lindsey Hawkins confirmed is done for the year, SCN was also missing senior libero Jackie Ruder with an apparent lower leg injury, and senior hitter Adrianna Huptych, who suffered an apparent leg injury during warmups prior to the match. Both injury statuses are to be determined moving forward.

The North Stars are fighting through a six-game losing streak.

"Our team has so much resiliency where we can just fight back on almost any ball," said North Stars sophomore outside hitter Haley Burgdorf, who had seven kills. "We just try and do our best, especially knowing now we have three starters down, we just try and keep going."

McCall, a sophomore setter, had six kills. Bardouniotis followed with four kills and an ace.

"Mia brings a lot of things. She knows how to run an offense," Burgdorf said. "And, she plays right side great; she just really knows how to keep us all together. And, gives us good sets, no matter out-of-system, in-system and just really brings the team together."

Benet's Audrey Asleson (7) hits the ball past St. Charles North's Sidney Wright (26) during a game on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
Benet's Christine Pullen (9) returns the serve from St. Charles North during a game on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
Benet's Ellie Stiernagle sets the ball for Sophia Pursley Wednesday at St. Charles North. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
Benet's Aniya Warren (8) returns the ball against St. Charles North during a game on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
Benet's Gabby Stasys (2) hits the ball past St. Charles North's Alex Bardouniotis (19) during a game on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
Benet's Valerie Sarros (19) hits the ball past St. Charles North's Alex Bardouniotis (19) during a game on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
St. Charles North's Mia McCall hits the ball past Benet's Ava Novak Wednesday in St. Charles. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
Benet's Ellie Stiernagle (11) sets the ball against the St. Charles North during a game on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
Benet celebrates the 2-1 win over St. Charles North during a game on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
St. Charles North's Haley Burgdorf (23) returns a sever from Benet during a game on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
St. Charles North's Meg Kalenowski (2) returns the ball against Benet during a game on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
St. Charles North celebrate a point against Benet during a game on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
St. Charles North's Haley Burgdorf (23) fires a shot past Benet's Sophia Pursley (18) and Sophia Chinetti (15) during a game on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
St. Charles North's Alex Bardouniotis (19) hits the ball past Benet's Gabby Stasys (2) and Ellie Stiernagle (11) during a game on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
St. Charles North's Adrianna Huptych (8) sits on the bench with her knee wrapped after getting injured during warms before a match against Benet on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
St. Charles North's Adrianna Huptych (8) sits on the bench with an iced wrapped knee after getting injured during warms before a match against Benet at home on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Mark Black/Shaw Local News Network
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