Russia’s Ava Gibson (#8) and Ruby Francis gang up on the shot attempt of Jackson Center’s Tatum Reichert. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Julie Wright Daniel)
Russia played through its youth and shut out Jackson Center to gain their 8th win in conference play. Bigger matches, and bigger goals lie just ahead…much bigger!
Russia, OH – Jackson Center’s veteran volleyball coach, Kim Metz, has something that Russia’s coach, Aaron Watkins desperately wants.
And frankly, it’s something that Metz wants to believe she can eventually do again. She and her Tigers volleyball program won back-to-back OHSAA volleyball titles a decade ago, in 2015 and ’16. Watkins…would like to win just one, to start with.
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Watkins and his Raiders improved to 10-4 for the season Tuesday night – 8-1 in SCL play – with a straight-set win over Jackson Center, 25-22. 25-10. and 25-20. Metz’s Tigers, with just four seniors and lots of inexperienced juniors and sophomores, fell to 4-10 for the season, and 2-6 in conference play.
That said, the Tigers put up a scrap in the opening set, back and forth with three ties until 16-16…when Russia suddenly went on a 4-0 run, took control of the set momentum, and eventually closed it out, 25-22.
The momentum swing stayed with the Raiders in the second set, who suddenly seemed to hit better, block better, and serve better…maybe their best in a month…to win 25-10 and take a commanding lead.
But after spotting Russia an early advantage, Jackson Center came back late in the third set, but made too many late mistakes to win and again came up short, 25-20.
Metz smiled when reminded of those 2015 and ’16 teams, their passion for the game, and their instinct for playing together.
“We’ve got some good young players who have that passion,” she said. “But those teams back then were always in the gym…always had a ball in their hands. They had that passion to play, figure things out for themselves, and to play together. We’re very young right now, and we need to learn to play together. And to do that it takes time.”
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Watkins, for years, has maintained that the goal of previous teams was to win a district title. Get that far in volleyball and anything is possible beyond. This year, however, he’s set his sights a bit higher.
“Oh yeah,” he smiled Tuesday. “I want to win a regional. I think we’re in a good place to win a district. We’ve played a very hard non-conference schedule where we’ve come up short in a couple of matches. We’ve learned a lot, and we’re focusing on playing with some consistency.
Russia’s Celeste Borchers scores a kill during Tuesday’s SCL win over Jackson Center.
“We have these spurts when we look really good. And then we’ll have a spurt of four or five points where we look like…what the heck are we doing? So we’re trying to find ways to be more consistent throughout the match, and I thought we did a nice job of that in the second set tonight. That was the most complete set we’ve played for a couple of weeks. We had the lead in set three, and again, we let it slip away. So we have to stay aggressive, don’t tense up, and learn to expand a lead in those situations.”
And the trick is…how?
Blessed with some size, and athleticism, like Metz and Jackson Center he has but three seniors on his roster. The rest is a mix of freshmen, sophomores, and juniors learning to play with aggression and instinct.
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There are some fundamental things that will come in time, but only through time in the gym, time with each other, and time against good competition. The best way to learn…is from someone who knows how to win. Hence, playing the better talents in the area like Versailles, New Bremen, and Marion Local, who they beat in straight sets (Max Preps) back at the beginning of the month.
“We’re fortunate that we have an unbeaten JV team,” says Watkins. “They’re 14-0 and they really push us in practice every day. That makes a difference when there’s six on the other side that equally competitive and they’re pushing like that.”
Russia’s Aryana Cordonnier sets up to hit during set 2 of Tuesday;s match with Jackson Center.
But regarding that regional goal…are they pushing in practice in the manner of the area’s other top Division VII teams – Loramie, New Bremen, and Covington.
And regarding the SCL title goal, they own an early win over Anna, with whom they’re tied atop the league standings, and lost the return match last week. They’ll need some help to secure the outright title.
But first the Raiders have eight more competitive matches with some of the area’s best, including Coldwater, Botkins and Fort Loramie. The question is…how much can they grow, and how soon can they acquire what the teams you see in the regionals have?
If you ask Kim Metz she’ll tell you…it’s a passion for volleyball, for each other, and competition.
If you ask Aaron Watkins, he’ll tell you he’s in a good place to win a district. 10-4 against that schedule is nothing to ignore. But the difference between a district and a regional title is always far more than a matter of days. It’s the days behind you, and what you did with them.
And he knows. Boy, does he know.
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