Monday, Nov. 16, 2009

State volleyball champion Midgets already talking three-peat

Class 2A champs should simply reload for 2010 campaign

NORMAL -- Lesa Bolt leaned against a wall outside the locker room at Redbird Arena, both hands clasping the Class 2A state championship trophy.

The coach of Freeburg High's volleyball team, who stands 5-foot-8, appeared to be struggling under the weight of the hardware, which was nearly half her size.

No worries, she said.

"I got it," Bolt said with a smile. "I'm not letting it go."

Bolt's grip on the trophy was secure, and so is Freeburg's claim as the best Class 2A volleyball team in the state after the Midgets topped (Palos Heights) Chicago Christian 25-19, 24-26, 25-17 in the title match Saturday night.

It was the second straight state title for the Midgets (38-2), who won their final 21 matches. That winning streak could stretch well into the 2010 season, where Freeburg will once again be the team to beat in Class 2A.

Moments after the Midgets' victory Saturday, Bolt said she was already thinking about a possible three-peat.

"Absolutely," Bolt said. "I think the girls that came up and sat on the bench from J-V are very hungry for that. I think those girls want to be able to do it next year."

Graduation will hit Freeburg hard next season. The Midgets will lose a pair of Division I recruits and a three of their top four hitters in 6-1 senior Colleen Yarber (213 kills), 5-9 senior Sam Kassing (183 kills) and 6-2 senior Kayleigh Cox (150 kills, 120 blocks).

Yarber is heading to Southeast Missouri State University while Cox is heading to Miami-Ohio. The Midgets also will lose defensive specialists Amy Fournie and Annie Touchette.

"They've been awesome," Bolt said. "They've been a big part of this program and pushing it to this level."

But the Midgets are at that point where all programs want to get: They simply reload every year, not rebuild. And there's plenty of weaponry coming back.

"I'm real excited about this junior class because it just keeps feeding on and on," Bolt said. "Then the next girls want the same thing and it keeps going on and on.

"We have four starters returning, along with a few sophomores that got some playing time here and there, along with some other girls coming into the picture."

Foremost is 5-11 junior setter/outside hitter Chelsi Hummert, who may be one of the state's most versatile players. Hummert led the Midgets in kills with 251 and assists with 490.

In the state title match, Hummert had nine kills and 19 assists.

Also returning are 6-0 junior outside hitter Lucy Balch (141 kills), 6-1 junior middle Kelsey Robertson (77 kills, 113 blocks), sophomore setter Kacey Wahlig (455 assists) and junior libero Maddy Hogan (495 digs). Kelsey Mueller, a 6-0 sophomore outside hitter, recorded 69 kills filling in for Yarber, who missed six matches with a torn abdominal muscle.

"It'll definitely be hard to replace (the seniors), but I think we have underclassmen that are ready to play and do it all over again," Hummert said.

Knights return plenty

Also poised for a third consecutive trip to the state tournament are the Mater Dei Knights, who lost to Joliet Catholic Academy 25-20, 25-23 in the Class 3A state title match.

The Knights (35-7) -- who finished third in 2008 -- return four of their top five hitters in 5-9 sophomore Brooke Schulte (289 kills), 5-10 junior Kaley Boeckmann (141 kills), 5-10 junior Ali Mueller (136 kills) and 6-0 sophomore Abbey Winter (95 kills, 131 blocks).

Also back are both setters, junior Nicole Strieker (477 assists) and sophomore Sam Bedard (325 assists), sophomore libero Alyssa Hitpas and sophomore outside hitter Kayla Eversgerd. Both Hitpas and Eversgerd moved into starting roles at the end of the season.

The four graduating seniors are hitters Julie Huelsmann and Tabatha Albers and defensive specialists Lucy Albers and Andria Lampe.

Mater Dei coach Fred Rakers knows the Knights will be loaded.

"There is an awful lot of good kids coming back," Rakers said. "There's a lot of kids out there in the wings. We're in a glut of some really nice volleyball players. Sorry, seniors, when we look past you there's still a glut of good volleyball players. There's a nice set of good players that are going to keep the program going."

Joliet Catholic coach Christine Scheibe fully expects Mater Dei to make its 20th trip to state next year.

"I expect Mater Dei to be here every year," Scheibe said. "They are just that quality of a team and he's that good of a coach, and they get the challenge. You look at their record down here and the number of years that they've been down here, it's no surprise to me that they're here every year."

Southern flavor

Four members of the officiating crew working the state tournament were from Southern Illinois. They were Bill Wood (Belleville), Paul Cermak (Millstadt), Gina Fey (Chester) and Judy Stank (Benton).

Wood, Cermak and Fey are members of the Southern Illinois Volleyball Association. Barb Maue (O'Fallon) served as one of the officials coordinators.