Girls volleyball: Breese Mater Dei denies IC Catholic in 2A title match
NORMAL - All season long, IC Catholic Prep answered nearly every challenge.
Despite playing a schedule full of big-class opponents, including defending Class 4A state champion Mother McAuley and 3A runner-up Nazareth, the Knights kept building toward the final day of the volleyball season.
After losing in the Class 2A state championship match to Genoa-Kington last season, the Knights returned nearly their entire squad, most notably superstar and Penn State recruit Ava Falduto. The Knights were right on course for the program's fourth state championship, cruising to a two-set win over Carmi in Friday's state semifinals.
On Saturday afternoon at CEFCU Arena, IC Catholic struggled in the early portion of the first set against Breese Mater Dei's athletic and talented trio of Alyssa Koerkenmeier, Emma Johnson and Avery Wuebbels.
On this afternoon, even the standout IC Catholic group of Falduto, Lucy Russ, Emily Carling, Alysa Lawton, Delilah Hyland, Natalie Lawton and the rest of the team couldn't stop Breese Mater Dei.
Breese Mater Dei relied on its length and defense to end IC Catholic's dream of a state championship, recording a 25-21, 25-22 victory in the 2A state final.
"Obviously, it wasn't the outcome we came here for," IC Catholic coach Nancy Kerrigan said. "I thought Breese played an excellent match and executed very well. We had some struggles. It's a tough loss and a bitter pill to swallow, finishing second for the second year in a row but these girls' entire body of work and what they've done is just incredible. They had an amazing run."
In the final match of her illustrious prep career, Falduto showcased her brilliance in an all-around attempt to lead her team to the state championship. The Penn State recruit capped her career with a memorable line of 11 kills, eight digs and two aces.
"They were a very good team, and very strong with big blockers," Falduto said. "We knew we had to move the ball around and pass very well to keep them on their heels. I think we did our best, but they had the better game today."
Breese Mater Dei (32-6) overwhelmed IC Catholic with a balanced hitting attack. Johnson paved the way with a team-high seven kills, Elyse Strader chipped in with six kills, Wuebbels went for five kills and Addison Nenninger had four kills and 18 assists.
Breese Mater Dei coach Chad Rakers credited solid team play and chemistry for winning the program's first state championship since 2011.
"This group has come so far and overcome so much," Rakers said. "This is our 25th trip to state, so (my) dad put together a pretty solid program. It's our job to keep it moving in the right direction and make sure we don't let it slip. The girls came out with an agenda and played fearless and played aggressively and they didn't stop. Pulling this off in two sets is another feather in our cap. That was a tough team on the other side of the net."
IC Catholic (36-3) lost just six matches in the last two seasons, rising up to become a powerhouse in Class 2A to earn the program's ninth state trophy. In total, IC Catholic has won three state titles, including the 2013 2A state championship, placed second five times and came in third in 1989.
"I remember watching the 2013 state team with Lucy when we went together and we wanted it so bad," Falduto said. "We came (to state) two times and it was a dream come true. I'm so honored."
Even with an experienced and driven team, IC Catholic couldn't build any momentum against Breese Mater Dei. The back-and-forth match included six lead changes and 15 ties.
After Breese Mater Dei tried to runaway with the victory by taking an 11-6 lead in the first set, Falduto followed up a kill by Jenny Fromelt, back-to-back aces by Falduto and a kill by Carling to tie the game at 11-11.
Wuebbels made two back-to-back plays - a block and a kill - to spark Breese Mater Dei to a 20-16 lead that allowed them to pull out the first set.
Breese Mater Dei built a 13-10 lead in the second set, but IC Catholic came roaring back to tie the game at 17-17 following an ace by Abby Pikulik. Johnson answered with two straight kills to give Breese Mater Dei a 19-17 edge.
IC Catholic knotted the game at 21-21, though Breese Mater Dei's Strader pounded a kill, Ava Lampe added an ace and Nenninger's kill pushed the game out of reach.
IC Catholic picked up big efforts from numerous players, with Hyland collecting five kills, Russ finishing with 19 assists, 11 digs and three kills, Alysa Lawton going for 14 digs and Carling chipped in 10 digs and two kills.
"We were definitely outsized in this match," Alysa Lawton said. "They had very strong hitters at all three of the spots and never really made any hitting errors. They were a very consistent team."