St. Henry’s Kylie Bollenbacher loses some skin but saves a point in Tuesday’s win over Coldwater. (Press Pros Feature Photos)
Using a packed gym and non-stop energy, #4 St. Henry handed #1 Coldwater its second loss in as many nights in straight-set fashion.
St. Henry, OH – Coldwater coach Nikki Etzler will not panic. And she’ll probably find some positive teaching application out of losing her second match Tuesday in as many nights, 3-0, to MAC rival St. Henry.
Never one to shy away from competition, Coldwater lost on Monday in five sets to the reigning champion in Division III, the once-beaten Tipp City Red Devils.
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So Etzler’s Cavaliers, the #1-ranked team in Division V last week, and St. Henry, the #4-ranked team in Division VI, squared off in front of a packed St. Henry gym Tuesday no doubt knowing that at this point of the season there’s nothing left that’s better than a tournament atmosphere to prepare you for what’s to come. And that’s what they got.
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St. Henry won it in straight sets in a match so competitive that neither team ever led by more than five points.
In a match so competitive that all three sets were tied at 18-18…before St. Henry ultimately moved on to win all three.
And that’s what Etzler is likely to remind her team in Wednesday’s practice. 1) They’ve had a taste of what it’s going to be like come one-and-done time.
And 2) get used to it. Expect to win the close matches when your only alternatives are to move on, or go home.
“I couldn’t be more proud of my girls for the way they competed, for showing that kind of mental toughness,” said St. Henry coach Tricia Rosenbeck. “It shows that we’re growing.”
St. Henry’s Karlee Baumer tips a point through the block attempt of Coldwater’s Campbell Etzler and Mara Riethman.
No doubt Rosenbeck and the Redskins had had this game on their minds for days – one of the MAC’s supreme challenges in volleyball, along with New Bremen, Versailles and Parkway, in the always-crowded conference standings. They had lost to both Versailles and New Bremen on back-to-back weeks in September, their two conference losses, and had something to prove, if to no one else but themselves.
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The atmosphere, and the Redskins’ energy was electric as the first set went back-and-forth – constant ties and 1-point leads – until tied at 18. St. Henry had a short 3-0 run that put them ahead 21-18, and captured four of the final six points to win it, 25-20.
The second set was a carbon copy. More back-and-forth. More slim leads, ties and lead changes. And again, tied at 18-18, St. Henry managed to eke out a 4-0 run that gave them the set on a Mylee Kramer kill, 25-21.
St, Henry’s Kylie Bollenbacher rises to block a Cavalier shot attempt in Tuesday’s Redskins’ win.
What’s unusual in volleyball is this. While it’s a momentum sport, seldom does a team with the momentum carry that momentum through the entire match – not without a lull of some kind.
But when Coldwater came out for the third set and went ahead 13-9, St. Henry reached down for that extra gear, found it, and immediately served, hit, and played defense to once again tie the set at 18-18. It proved to be the jumping off point for all three games, and it gave Nikki Etzler and the Cavaliers the afore-mentioned object lesson about how to handle crunch time in matches to come over the next three weeks.
St. Henry went ahead 21-20.
Coldwater did some digging of their own to come back and tie, 22-22…then went ahead 22-23.
St. Henry tied at 23-23…and 24-24…and then finished the match on a kill and a passing error, 26-24.
St. Henry improved to 17-4 for the season…and 6-2 in MAC play.
Coldwater dropped to 17-4 for the season…and fell to 7-1 in conference, still one game ahead of St. Henry, New Bremen, Versailles and Parkway as the outright leader.
“We knew we had to play aggressive, because of Coldwater’s defense,” added Rosenbeck. “They picked up a lot of balls tonight that other teams wouldn’t.”
St. Henry’s Renee Wendel and Addy Homan encourages teammate Karlee Baumer prior to her serve attempt to close out the match.
And that aggression – or energy – was the difference in the match. Because while Coldwater obviously matched the energy and pace of play, the longer that St. Henry competed the more they seemed to believed it was to be their night. There was no letdown, no lull, and no lead greater than four points by Coldwater.
“Our energy has been awesome all year,” smiled Rosenbeck. “We have the best bench, the best dads and the best cheering section, and our fans packed the house and brought the energy. That definitely helped us. I am proud of my girls for the way they finished (with all three sets tied at 18), because they would not have been able to do that at the beginning of the season. That shows how much we’ve grown in confidence, how much we’ve grown mentally.”
Tuesday’s match also shows again that Division V, VI, and VII volleyball will go through west-central Ohio to determine a title. And the motivation has never been higher as St. Henry (Division VI) seeks its long-awaited eighth state title, and the first since 2011 when Diana Kramer was the coach.
Now at New Bremen (Division VI), Kramer will seek her fifth since 2017 with the Cardinals.
Coldwater (Division V) is seeking its second state titles after years of near-misses and frustration.
And Parkway (Division VI) and Versailles (Division V) will be seeking their third and fourth, respectively.
All within twenty miles of each other…
And a world apart from any other league you can name.
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