Girls volleyball: York has to work to defeat Glenbard North
In the IHSA girls volleyball state playoffs, all you've got to be is just a little better than your opponent to advance.
Gigi Barr made sure that York was that and more on Thursday.
The Dukes (25-12) slipped past a pesky Glenbard North side 28-26 in the first set of a Class 4A regional final at Addison Trail. Then Barr went to work in the second, recording 8 kills, which propelled York to a 25-14 victory and the regional title.
The Dukes will face Lyons Twp. in the sectional semifinals at home Monday. The Lions ousted Glenbard West 25-21, 26-24 on Thursday.
"I think we definitely got the momentum going from winning the first game," said Barr, a sophomore who was no slouch in the first game with 5 kills. "We started playing as a team. In the first game we were a little more individual."
This is true. Senior Jessica Levy's serving pushed the Dukes out to a 5-1 lead early in the second set, then later recorded a kill and a pair of aces that gave her team a 15-10 lead.
Another senior, Sarah Baird, took over late in the match, taking a 19-13 advantage to 22-13, due in part to an ace, a Barr kill and a big block by senior Asha Labine.
But it was Barr who finished the job with the last two serves. And all along the way she left her mark with a powerful right-arm swing. She had a pair of kills early in Levy's serving run, then added another later to get a critical sideout with York up 16-11.
"She was nervous the first game, you could see," York coach Patty Iverson said. "She's a sophomore, she's playing outside hitter in a playoff game. She's a big hitter. She's doing a great job. I'm happy that she calmed down."
Labine ended up with 7 blocks, while Levy had as many kills. Baird had 3 service aces and sophomore Katie Norgle had 12 digs. Barr's twin sister, Stella, contributed stellar play at the net, including a block.
Across the court it wasn't the finish Glenbard North coach Anne Bremner was hoping for, but she was consoled by the fact that the team had recorded one of the best seasons in school history at 21-15.
She was proud of the effort her team put together, particularly from senior middle hitter Maddie Vegrzyn and junior outside hitter Maddie Meyers, who were a constant menace at the net, particularly in the first set.
Down 16-13, Vegrzyn got a big kill, which put sophomore libero Olivia Muller at the serving line, who promptly tied the game with a pair of aces. But it was just wasn't meant to be for the Panthers.
"We've never been in these situations," Bremner said. "We said, This is our time. We haven't done this yet. We haven't beaten one of these teams yet. Next year's team will come in with the confidence that we showed this year. That makes a big difference."
Naturally, it was tough to see her senior season end, but Vegrzyn could smile about the memories.
"My freshman year, we had a play-in game - we were unseeded and we didn't even win that game," she said. "My senior year, we were seeded and we didn't have a play-in game and we won and made it all the way to our regional championships. To even be here and play at the level that we played in was amazing."