Girls volleyball: Vogelzang, Timothy Christian ace supersectional test
At the halfway point of the second set at Monday’s Class 2A girls volleyball super-sectional, Timothy Christian needed a spark.
Sophomore Kate Vogelzang provided one, and it ignited a flame that sent the Trojans on to a big win.
Timothy Christian, playing on its home court, had survived a scare from opponent Latin to win the first set.
Then in the second set, just like the first, they fell behind the Romans midway through.
Enter Vogelzang.
The sophomore super-sub came into the game at the service line and promptly served two consecutive aces to give her team the lead.
The Trojans went on from there to a 25-23, 25-23 victory.
They move onto the state semifinals, where Timothy Christian will face Bloomington Central Catholic at noon Friday at CEFCU Arena in Normal.
“I was really nervous,” said Vogelzang of her moment in the spotlight, “but these girls (her teammates) are amazing and I love them so much. I knew I had to do it for them, and luckily I did."
Trojans coach Scott Piersma had nothing but praise for his sophomore defensive specialist.
“That was a tough spot for Kate to be in,” Piersma said. “That’s a mentally tough player to do what she did in that situation.”
The win gave the Trojans their first state berth since 2015, when they finished third.
It will also be the first trip to the finals for star outside hitter Abby VanderWal. The senior led Timothy Christian Monday with 15 kills.
“This is incredible,” said VanderWal. “There are no words to describe it. Our girls have worked so hard and we can’t wait get down to Bloomington.”
“This is her fourth year,” said Piersma of VanderWal, “and she deserves this. Not only because of her talent, but also what she means to the program and all the other girls.”
Timothy Christian trailed Latin in the first set by five points when they took a much-needed timeout.
“We just took a big step back,” said VanderWal, “a big breather, and regrouped.
“After that we started playing our game. We got more comfortable and made fewer errors, and that’s what led us to the win.”
The Trojans rebound to win the first game, then rallied to take the lead in the second game on the two aces by Vogelzang — the only Trojans aces in the match.
Latin came back to knot up set two late, but a final dig from senior Miriam Pozdol-Niego, a set by Elizabeth Alex, and a final kill by VanderWal put the game in the win column for Timothy Christian.
“I’ll never forget that moment,” said VanderWal of the match-winner. “There’s no word to describe it except amazing. It’s all I ever dreamed of."
Pozdol-Niego finished with 11 digs, while Alex pitched in with 24 assists.
Alex said that despite the Trojans falling behind in each set, she wasn’t worried.
“With all of the hard work we put in,” she said, “I knew we were going to be OK.
“We’ve been in situations like this before, and we work on it in practice all the time. Our motivation today was to go downstate. We’ve talked about it all season long and to actually be able to do it is amazing.”