Russia’s Celeste Borchers rips a winner in the third set to help the Raiders take out the state’s #2-ranked team in straight sets. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Julie McMaken Daniel)
Russia and Fort Loramie more than made a statement for Shelby County League volleyball, winning their respective Division VII semi-final matches in straight sets to advance to Saturday’s regional final…and a berth in the Final Four.
Clayton, OH – The biggest understatement of the night Thursday was that from Russia volleyball coach Aaron Watkins when he said, “Man, I’m proud.”
That simply doesn’t say enough for a young group that fought some youthful moments throughout the season. Yet, they finished with a share of the Shelby County League title with Fort Loramie and Anna…and Thursday earned a berth in the Division VII regional final by knocking out the state’s #2-ranked team, Leipsic, in straight sets…25-23, 26-24, and 25-22.
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“None of these girls had won a regional game,” added Watkins, post-game. “And my seniors said, ‘We want to win a regional game, and we want to get to state.’ We talked about it on Saturday when they played down [to another level], and then they pushed themselves in practice to come out here tonight and reflect that in a huge match. I’m just so proud.”
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A young team? You can’t underscore that enough. Youth can be served when they don’t have enough experience to be frightened by the moment. And youth can be served when it realizes at some point that they’re as good as the moment. So why not win the moment? And that characterized Russia’s body language at the start or the match. They were nervous, moved stiffly, and tried to feel their way along.
But fortunate for Russia, Leipsic was just as tentative, and it took a while for All-State candidate Danaysia Danzy to adjust to the same atmosphere – Danzy the biggest hitter that Russia had probably faced all season. An outside hitter with power and impressive range, her early absence offensively allowed Russia (20-6) to build a small lead and cling to it throughout the first set.
It took some time for Leipsic all-state candidate Danaysia Danzy to get started…and it helped Russia to a positive start.
Defensively, Watkins’ Raiders caught themselves watching…too many shots that they thought were points on the other side of the net, that Leipsic kept in play to the surprise of Russia. Call it the big-eye…on the big stage. But they rallied for a couple of late points to put the first set away, 25-23, and that seemed to settle the anxiety.
What happened at the end of set #2 was enough to convince them that they might be good enough to beat anybody if you just keep playing the game.
Leipsic came out a better version of themselves (24-1 on the season) and quickly got Danzy more involved. The 5’11” senior began raining powerful shots from tough angles into tight spaces, handcuffing Russia defenders, and simply hitting the ball through block attempts. It was enough to help Leipsic build as much as a five-point lead, that like Russia in the first, they clung to until the final ten points of the set.
Trailing by five points at 22-17, the Raiders suddenly found a quick five-point run to close the gap to 24-23. And already trailing by a set, you could sense things tightening on the Leipsic side of the net. The Raiders then tied it on a Leipsic kill attempt that went out of bounds…then scored the final two points to take the set, 26-24.
Losing the five-point lead cost Leipsic more than the second set. It also cost them what emotional advantage they had regained after believing before the match that there was no way they were going to lose to Russia. They were soon convinced otherwise as the Raiders came out for the third and began to play like they had played against Loramie in league play, and Marion Local, Versailles, and New Bremen in non-league play – tougher teams than against which Leipsic had built their resume’.
Russia’s Aryana Cordonnier scores to help the Raiders’ comeback in the second set.
“We settled in,” said Watkins. “We talked about communication. Our confidence in each other got better. We knew that Danzy was going to get her big swings, so just move on to the next play. We did a really nice job of adjusting to the moment. They couldn’t get on any runs.
“We had them scouted and felt their wings sat back a lot, so we told the girls that if they thought they could get some tips to fall in front of them to do it. But as the match went on we told them to be more aggressive and just go at the ball. We started swinging more and we were not being stopped. I told the girls after the second set that the first five points of the third set was going to determine the match.”
Watkins makes his living as a financial investment professional, and Thursday his skills in reading the profitable signs for success were dead-on.
This time it was Russia who came out and established the five-point bulge. They made enough mini-runs to frustrate Leipsic, and Leipsic made enough serving errors to erase whatever gains they made to cut into Russia’s lead. They cut it to two points, twice, but never closer as the Raiders won it on a ball that tipped over the net, more frustration for the state’s #2…25-22.
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It was a team win, cliche’ as that sounds. Everyone contributed, everyone seemed to have their moment, and Celeste Borchers had hers with some timely kills in the waning moments of the final set.
“Our confidence grew and the energy in here was just insane,” said Borchers. “The energy of the crowd helped, and that’s what volleyball is. It’s a game of ups and downs. It definitely helped us turn on our game and make those big plays.
Trick or treat? There’s no question over who had the biggest (and loudest) student following.
“And the second set was crazy…just to be able to stay mentally tough and come back to win like we did. It gave us so much momentum, and after that our confidence was through the roof.”
Borchers plays basketball at Russia, but admitted…that never in her young life had she had a better athletic moment than winning her first regional contest to set up the chance to play for a berth in the Final Four on Saturday.
“No, nothing ever like this,” she smiled. “This has been crazy.”
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The night’s second match was competitive, but never crazy as Fort Loramie, as many predicted, took down a pesky Mississinawa Valley team in straight sets…25-18, 25-17, and 25-13…to set up an all Shelby County League regional final on Saturday.
Action at the net…in the nightcap Loramie played like the defending state champion at times, knocking out Mississinawa in straight sets.
Fort Loramie, at times, played like the defending champion in last year’s Division VII tournament, and with former coach John Rodgers there to view it appreciatively.
It was a gritty effort by Mississinawa (21-5), out of the WOAC. But like Russia’s win over Leipsic, the difference in strength of schedule – the trial by fire – was readily evident. Fort Loramie’s schedule was rated as one of the top two in the state in terms of competitive quality, and while they had their moments the Redskins (20-6) were always able to regroup, refocus, and regain the momentum and a lead.
After Loramie took the first set 25-18, Mississinawa came back to build leads twice in the second set. But a 5-0 run by Loramie erased that lead and saw the Redskins take 8 of the final 10 points for a 25-17 win.
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And again, in the third set Mississinawa broke positively out of the timeout, but at 8-7, Mississinawa, Loramie proceeded to score the next twelve points on their way to a 25-13 win to clinch the match.
First-year coach Kelly Hoying was pleased, and appreciative, of her team’s straight-set performance.
Fort Loramie’s Chloe Bruns sends a point past a Blackhawk defender in the second semi-final match Thursday at Northmont High School.
“The kids don’t have school tomorrow,” she quipped. “But I do. I told them I needed a good night’s sleep.
“Tonight was the first tine since the beginning of the tournament that I’ve had my full team back. Everybody was back and healthy, and that felt good. The girls that filled in tonight were phenomenal…did a really great job. It could have gone differently, so I’m grateful to get that win.
“We found a groove there in the second set, we locked in, and you can’t mess around in a tournament game. Mississinawa has been like a Cinderella team so far, and we couldn’t let them make us lose focus.”
The win sets up an all-Shelby County Division VII regional pairing, and the third time that Russia and Loramie have met this season. Each team won once during the regular season, in five sets, and Saturday will be the bigger-than-average tie-breaker for the two schools, just ten miles apart.
Loramie’s game showed all the phases of a potential state champion.
“We know that Russia is a great team,” said Hoying. “And we have to come with our best. It can’t be an off-day for us. We have to show up and play. I’m still a little salty from the past, and the times we’ve played at Northmont in the regional finals and left as runner-up. So I’m ready to avenge that. I know it’s going to be tough, and I know that Russia feels the same way. We’re not done yet. We have to win one more.”
And if you had polled a hundred people in August, not many would have picked Fort Loramie to be in a position to return to the Final Four with a win on Saturday…coming off their second state title and arguably the best team in school history.
“I’m super proud of this team,” added Hoying. “We had one girl return and I think the year says something about the girls trusting me as coach. I might have a different mindset and approach than John had, but they trusted me rather than being afraid of things that I do differently. I think this says a lot about the girls.”
And, it says a lot about Shelby County League volleyball…Aaron Watkins’ annual prediction to make it one step farther…and the irrefutable fact of Fort Loramie having won their eighteenth consecutive district title last Saturday. Certainly no fluke. both Russia and Loramie made it to the regional tournament.
And swept.
Impressive!
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