Sycamore ends Burlington Central's run

The girls from Burlington Central sat in a hallway feet from the Huntley gym where they'd just been swept 25-22, 25-15 by powerful Sycamore in a Class 3A regional title match Saturday night.

Tears flowed freely in the face of stark, unexpected finality. Four senior starters will graduate from a team that finished the season 33-4, a team that didn't expect its season to end Saturday let alone end on such an emphatic note at the regional level.

Simply put, Burlington Central's dream of penetrating deep into the playoffs ended because it didn't receive service well, which led to off-target passing, which lessened what setter Molly Turk could do in running the potent Central offense.

Turk was forced, usually on the run, to set the outsides while one of Burlington's strengths -- it's middle hitting combination of Teresa Krog and Kim Ingraham -- was essentially taken out of the match.

"It was all about passing," Rockets coach Marv Leavitt said. "We just could not get consistent passing all night. Give (Sycamore) credit. They passed very well and forced us not to pass well."

That wasn't just luck, according to Sycamore coach Debbie Klock, who directed the Spartans' zone serving.

"We watched eight matches of theirs, eight hours of film," Klock explained. "We went over their tendencies, what they run on serve-receive. Once we calmed down and got over our nervousness and tightness, with their talent and my guidance we were able to get it done."

Burlington broke out of a 1-1 tie in Game 1 with 4 straight points on a Krog kill and 3 unforced Sycamore errors. But the Spartans (35-2) fought back to tie the game on kills from powerful hitter Lauren Evans (8 kills, 3 aces, 14 digs) and 6-3 middle blocker Allison Johnson (5 kills, 2 blocks).

The Rockets fell behind 16-10, but rallied to win 8 of the next 10 points to tie the match 18-18, a run capped by Meghan Zasada's spike from the right side.

Tied at 20, Central grabbed the lead on a Latham kill that came after a remarkable, point-saving dig from Turk. The Rockets went ahead 22-20 thanks to a Sycamore hitting error.

But the Spartans emerged from a timeout and reeled off 5 straight points to win Game 1. First, Allison Johnson blocked Krog in the middle for a point, then Evans served 3 aces in a row, 2 of which should have been returned. "We have five seniors and we serve very aggressively," said Allison Johnson, a Missouri recruit.

Diane Kasper's tip on game point deflected off the Central block to give the Spartans a 1-0 lead.

Game 2 was tied 5-5 when Sycamore won 8 of 10 points to take a 13-7 lead, a run highlighted by Allison Johnson's block kill of a Rachael Latham spike and another Evans ace.

Burlington Central sophomore Stephanie Hothus (7 kills, 5 digs) put the ball to the floor with her best booming swing of the night to pull the Rockets within 18-11, but the quick-setting of Drake-bound Caitlin Johnson (26 assists) was too much for the Central block to handle.

It was an unceremonious end to a fantastic season for Burlington Central, undefeated champions of the Big Northern East.

"This is my favorite team I've ever been on," said Krog, who will play at Murray State next fall. "We had heart and we were so united. We wanted this so bad. But give Sycamore props, they worked really hard."

"We instantly formed a bond at the beginning, which made this the greatest senior season I could have asked for," Ingraham added.

Central's final victory of the season came in the regional semifinal against host Huntley. (13-23). The Rockets made quick work of the Red Raiders in both games, winning 25-13, 25-10.

Playing her final match for Huntley, senior Krissy Bergquist finished with 6 kills and 8 digs. Sophomore outside hitter Toni Jaehnig led the red Raiders with 7 kills and sophomore setter Amanda Carroll was credited with 12 asssits.

"We practiced all week and went over everything possibly that we could, but that's a pretty good team," Huntley coach Michelle Jakubowski said of the Rockets. "They dig the ball. If we didn't put the ball away, the odds of winning the point were not very good."

Sycamore defeated Kaneland (3-25) with ease in the first regional final, 25-13, 25-7 behind 7 kills from Lauren Evans and 5 kills and 4 blocks by Allison Johnson.