Wildcats roar to victory

The Libertyville girls volleyball team did not play aggressively enough in losing the first game 25-21 to Maine South on Monday.

"You can't be timid against a team like (that)," said senior middle blocker Ali Haws.

Haws and the Wildcats were anything but timid in the final two games of the Class 4A supersectional at Hersey.

Libertyville controlled play the rest of the match and took the second and third games by scores of 25-19 and 25-17.

This will be the first time coach Chris Trzyna, in her 21st year at Libertyville, will take her team downstate.

The Wildcats play Naperville Central at 7:30 p.m. Friday in a state semifinal match at Redbird Arena in Normal.

"We've played great at the supersectional before, but we always fell a little bit short," Trzyna said. "(Tonight), you could tell this was going to happen."

Libertyville, the No. 2 seed, was extremely calm in the huddle prior to returning to the court. The Wildcats have shown an ability all season to win three-game matches.

"That's when our team starts to thrive," Trzyna said.

In the second game, Haws really began to assert herself. She ended up with a match-high 9 kills and 7 blocks.

"Ali caught fire in the second game," Trzyna said. "Her blocks were a huge turning point in the match. She gave us huge momentum and we never gave it back."

Maine South, the No. 4 seed, played almost flawlessly in the first game, but the Hawks' mistakes multiplied in the second.

In particular, the Hawks (31-9) started serving and hitting long. Libertyville (34-6) showed great discipline by letting the balls land out.

"We worked on running (quickly) to the line," said Wildcats senior libero Emma Melendez. "The bench did a great job of calling it out, and we also got help from the other players on the court."

Libertyville played from the lead for most of the game, but Maine South cut its deficit to 19-18 on a kill by Karen Solari. The Wildcats responded with 6 consecutive points to put the game away. Senior middle blocker Lexie Gibbons, who came through on match point against Schaumburg, had the game-winning kill.

Maine South's serve-receive was especially shaky in the third game. By contrast, the Wildcats made almost no unforced errors until near the end of the game.

Libertyville never let up in the decisive game. The Wildcats enjoyed leads of 6-1 and 18-9. Once Maine South closed to 20-13, Libertyville was content to trade points the rest of the game.

Wildcats seniors Leigha Bystol (6 kills) and Katy Pfund (4 kills) came through with two of their best matches of the season.

Libertyville's defense was led by Melendez (17 digs), and seniors Erin DeMarco (10 digs) and Jenny Caren (10 digs).

DeMarco kept setting the ball to Haws down the stretch.

"I've never seen her want the ball that much," DeMarco said.