The Sentinel: Unity Volleyball

St. Joseph-Ogden outlast Unity in three-set battle to secure regional title berth

Emma McKinney (left) and Reese Wheatley celebrate a point for the St. Joseph-Ogden volleyball team in their home match against Maroa-Forsyth. McKinney was credit with 23 assists and led the team in digs in SJO's regional semifinal against Unity on Tuesday.

Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks

OAKWOOD - In a high-stakes, do or stay home, semifinal showdown, St. Joseph-Ogden eked out a three-set win over Unity on Tuesday at the Oakwood Regional, outscoring the Rockets 25-17, 19-25, 25-16 to secure their spot in Thursday’s regional title game against St. Thomas More. Despite Unity's strong season-ending push, the Spartans’ balanced attack and relentless defense proved decisive.

St. Joseph-Ogden (18-18), who came into the match with momentum from a two-game win streak, saw strong play from outside hitter Tinley Ideus leading the offense, forcing Unity’s defense to work overtime. Ideus, a standout for SJO, amassed 10 kills and added 10 digs, demonstrating her versatility and impact on both sides of the ball. Senior Ava Seggebruch complemented Ideus with seven kills and 10 digs.

Unity, however, did not go down easily. After falling in the first set, the Rockets adjusted their defensive strategy. Their efforts paid off in the second set, where they clawed back, winning, 25-19. Capitalizing on their defensive stands and taking advantage of Spartan errors, Unity found its footing to force a third set.

But the Spartans regrouped for the final frame, tightening up defensively and refocusing on their attack. Junior Emma McKinney played a critical role as a setter, tallying 23 assists for the evening and orchestrated an offense that saw contributions from multiple hitters. Ally Schmitz added four kills and nine digs, while Addi Childers and Reese Wheatley, who led in team blocks with two, each chipped in two kills, ensuring that SJO’s attack remained dynamic and unpredictable.

Ava Seggebruch pass the ball during SJO's home match against Maroa-Forsyth. The Spartans face a formidable St. Thomas More squad in their regional title match.

Defensively, Katie Erickson anchored the back row for the Spartans, tallying nine digs and serving two aces to keep the Rockets off balance. Ultimately SJO sealed their advance, winning the set with a 25-16 win.

Tuesday’s victory was particularly sweet for St. Joseph-Ogden, as Unity had previously bested them in straight sets, 25-23, 25-18, on September 24. This time, with a title game on the line, the Spartans showed marked improvement in their attack and defensive consistency, areas that had hampered them in the previous encounter. The win sends St. Joseph-Ogden to Thursday's regional final against a formidable opponent in St. Thomas More, who triumphed over Bismarck-Henning-Rossville-Alvin in their own semifinal matchup.

The Sabers will present a stiff challenge for SJO, having defeated the Spartans convincingly, 25-10, 25-12, earlier in the season. However, with renewed confidence and a balanced lineup, the Spartans look ready to give St. Thomas More a tougher contest this time around. Thursday’s title game, set for 6 p.m., will likely be an intense matchup as the Spartans seek their first regional title since their 2022 three-set win over BHRA.

Editor's correction: In our original story, we wrote that SJO had not won a regional title since "their 2019 trip to the Class 2A Final Four". That was incorrect. The article has been updated to reflect the Spartans won their most recent title in 2022 at the Bismarck-Henning-Rossville-Alvin regional.

Keywords: St. Joseph-Ogden volleyball, Unity Rockets, Oakwood Regional volleyball, Tinley Ideus, Ava Seggebruch, St. Thomas More volleyball, Illinois high school volleyball playoffs

Despite a solid first half, St. Joseph-Ogden soccer team opens season with loss

St. Joseph - St. Joseph-Ogden's Logan Patton settles the ball to keep it away from Oakwood-Salt Fork's Saul Carrillo during their season opener at Dick Duval Field on Monday. The Spartans, who are back on the pitch again today, fell 5-1 to the visiting Comets. SJO hosts the Bombers of Argenta-Oreana at 6:30 pm looking to bounce back from yesterday's loss. Below is a list of today's games streamed by the NFHS Network. Watch the SJO vs Oakwood-Salt Fork game here.

Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks

TODAY'S SPORTS LINE UP

Unity Varsity Girls Volleyball

@ LEROY | 4:50 PM Central
STREAM LIVE

Unity Varsity Boys Soccer

@ ST. TERESA | 5:00 PM Central
STREAM LIVE

SJO JV Volleyball VS Armstrong

HOME | 5:55 PM Central
STREAM LIVE

SJO Varsity Soccer VS Argenta-Oreana

HOME | 6:30 PM Central
STREAM LIVE

SJO Varsity Volleyball VS Armstrong

HOME | 7:00 PM Central
STREAM LIVE

Area teams start 2024 volleyball campaigns

St. Joseph - St. Joseph-Ogden's Ava Seggebruch goes up for a block during last year's home match against St. Anne. The Spartan varsity volleyball team will open their 2024 season at home tonight against Maroa-Forsyth following freshman and junior varsity matches. Looking to improve on last year's third-place finish in the highly competitive Illini Praire Conference (7-2), SJO finished the season with an impressive 28-6 record.

Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks

TODAY'S SPORTS LINE UP

Unity

Tolono, IL

Varsity Girls Volleyball

VS BHRA | 6:00 PM Central

STREAM LIVE

Urbana

Urbana, IL

Junior Varsity Boys Soccer

VS UNIVERSITY HIGH | 4:30 PM Central

STREAM LIVE

Varsity Girls Volleyball

VS MACARTHUR | 5:00 PM Central

STREAM LIVE

Varsity Boys Soccer

VS UNIVERSITY HIGH | 6:00 PM Central

STREAM LIVE

SJO

St. Joseph, IL

Varsity Boys Soccer

VS OAKWOOD | 4:30 PM Central

STREAM LIVE

Freshman Girls Volleyball

VS MAROA-FORSYTH | 5:00 PM Central

STREAM LIVE

Junior Varsity Boys Soccer

VS OAKWOOD | 6:00 PM Central

STREAM LIVE

Junior Varsity Girls Volleyball

VS MAROA-FORSYTH | 6:00 PM Central

STREAM LIVE

Varsity Girls Volleyball

VS MAROA-FORSYTH | 7:00 PM Central

STREAM LIVE

Season cut short

TOLONO - Ruby Tarr and teammates from the Unity volleyball team react while players from the opposing team celebrate their first-round postseason match at the Rocket Center. Tarr and the Rockets' season came to an end after facing Warrensburg-Latham on their home court on Monday. After taking the first set 25-13, Unity dropped the pair, 27-25, 25-15. UHS finished with a 16-17-1 record and closed out the regular seasono 7th in the Illini Prairie Conference. Follow this link to view more match photos ...

Beating Rantoul 2-0, seniors pace Rockets in volleyball victory

Unity's Reagan Little passes the ball to the front row during her team's road game at St. Joseph-Ogden. On Monday, Little chalked up 12 kills against the Rantoul Eagles during the Rockets' Senior Night contest.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

TOLONO - Unity extended its current win streak to three matches after defeating visiting Rantoul on Tuesday in straight sets, 2-0.

Seniors Reagan Little and Ruby Tarr shined on Senior Night in the Illini Prairie Conference matchup that ended the first set 29-27 and securing the win with a 25-21 advantage.

Little blasted the Eagles with 12 kills and pounded three aces from the backline. Tarr distributed 13 assists and notched a pair of kills. The duo tallied nine digs and two more, respectively.

Hoping to post their 16th win this season and level out their season record at .500, the varsity volleyball team will play their final regular season match on the road at Olympia tonight.

Unity opens their postseason play at the Rocket Center, hosting Warrensburg-Latham, Meridian, and three IPC teams, all seeded higher than the #9 Rockets. Monticello (21-11, 5-3), St. Thomas More (21-12, 4-4), and conference champions Bloomington Central Catholic (25-7, 8-0) are all in the hunt for the Tolono regional title. The winner of the regional title advances to the St. Joseph-Ogden sectional semifinal on Monday, October 30.

The five seniors honored at Tuesday night's home match included Little, Tarr, McKayla Schendel, Jocelyn LeFaivre, and Piper Steele.

Tarr leads Unity in acing Urbana, 2-0

TOLONO - Reagan Little and Piper Steele combined efforts to produce seven kills in Unity's home volleyball match against Urbana on Monday. The Rockets won the contest in straight sets 25-21, 25-21.

Unity's McKayla Schendel passes the ball to the front line during the Rockets' home match against Central High School in August. UHS moved to a 15-16-1 record after their non-conference match against the Urbana Tigers.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

Steele delivered three kills and three digs. Little, who led the team at the net and in the backcourt was credited with four kills and 10 digs.

Junior Lauren Shaw pounded two aces against the visiting Tigers and distributed eight passes. Meanwhile, senior Ruby Tarr slammed three aces and had six assists. Shaw chalked up six digs and Tarr added another six in the non-conference victory.

The Rockets improved to 15-16-1 and host Rantoul (13-19) tonight in their final regular season home match before facing Olympia on the road on Thursday.

The team will be back in action at the Rocket Center next Monday at 6pm in their postseason debut against #7 seed Warrensburg-Latham (22-10).