Girls volleyball: Downers Grove North advances to state final

NORMAL - With one final vicious swing of her right arm, Margaret Mahlke achieved history for Downers Grove North female athletics.

The Trojans have had state championship teams in badminton and cross country, but Saturday night the final girls volleyball match of the season will be different.

Never before in its history has a Downers Grove North girls team played in a state championship team sport.

But when Mahlke unleashed the last of her match-best 11 kills Friday night at Illinois State University, Prairie Ridge was relegated to the third-place match at the Class 4A tournament.

Downers North will face defending state champion Marist after defeating the Wolves 25-16, 25-21.

"I knew we weren't going to drop that set," Mahlke said of her match-winning kill. "We wanted that point."

The Downers North girls took a most unusual path to a state championship title match.

The Trojans (30-11) dropped their first three matches of the year and were 6-6 at one point.

In the first set the Trojans' Jade Casper had a kill to break the last of four ties.

Casper followed with another kill, and the Trojans were soon on their way. But it was Mahlke, the St. Louis recruit, who was simply the most dominant athlete on the court.

Mahlke had only 6 fewer kills than the entire Prairie Ridge team combined. Time and again Mahlke implored her team to critical momentum changes.

The other key storyline of the second semifinal at Redbird Arena was the debilitating errors Prairie Ridge made on its side of the net.

"So many unforced errors by us," said Prairie Ridge coach Stefanie Otto. "If you can't keep the ball inbounds, you're not going to win. We had 17 errors."

The Trojans were not about to excuse the mistakes.

"The difference for us was passing," Downers North freshman Gwendolyn Wolkow said. "We wanted it more than them."

Downers North was seemingly in command of the second set as well. The Trojans scored 10 of the first 15 points for the early cushion.

But Prairie Ridge scored 5 consecutive points for the only second-set tie.

Mahlke hit yet another kill. Downers North led by at least 2 points for the rest of the second set.

"The togetherness of this group has pulled us through," Downers North coach Mark Wasik said.

In the final flourish of the second set, Downers North (30-11) had a 9-3 lead to secure multiple match points.

Prairie Ridge (29-11) dodged four in succession until Mahlke had her unstoppable final kill.

Images: Downers Grove North advances to final in Class 4A girls volleyball