In high school volleyball it is pretty hard to beat a good team twice in a row.
The trick for St. Joseph-Ogden was to win the Oakwood regional title on Thursday and do it again against Monticello, who they played a week earlier in the last match of the Illini Prairie Conference regular season. The Spartans got the treat they were looking for and the first of a few more to come in the postseason after clipping the Sages in two sets, 25-17, 25-14.
The hard work the team has put in showed throughout the season showed in SJO's seemingly stress free, effortless play. One of things that senior Lacey Kaiser says the team had to do reach their currently level of play was talk more.
"Our communication has improved since the beginning," she said. "It was hard for a lot us because not many of us are super outgoing."
Kaiser led the team with three aces from the service line. She padded her stats with three kills and a trio of digs against the Sages.
"I believe in my teammates," she said. "If we get down, I know we can pull through and get back to win."
The Spartans were up 19-9 in the first set, but didn't close it out right away. Monticello dug in their heals and won eight of the next 13 points before SJO shut the door.
"I think we have definitely improved on capitalizing on certain points, and pushing whenever we should," said fellow senior Rylee Stahl. "We've worked a lot on siding out on the next point and not giving teams consecutive points in a row."
The Sages took a 4-1 lead in the second set before the Spartans reestablished control of the momentum going up 7-5 behind the pile driving swings of Katelyn Berry, Payton Vallee and sophomore Kennedi Burnett.
Berry finished the contest with a team-high nine kills and five digs. Vallee, a junior and outside hitter, contributed four kills and Burnett, who played strong defensively, had four kills and 10 digs.
Thursday's victory would not have been possible if it wasn't for the passing accuracy of Emily Bigger who took credit for 23 assists. She also scored a rare kill and contributed seven of the team's 45 digs.
"I think this win means a lot, but we are not super, super, super excited about it because it is just regionals," said Stahl, who like the rest of team, has her sights set on the king size of postseason candy, a state trophy. "We have a lot more to accomplish this season."
The Spartans advance to Monday's sectional semifinal against Seneca at Watseka. The Lady Irish defeated Manteno in both sets 25-22 to win the Peotone Regional. On Tuesday, they dropped the first set of their semifinal to Manteno 20-25 and came back to take the last two, 25-21, 25-21. The two teams are scheduled to start at 6pm. It will be back to work analyzing the Lady Irish for SJO, but in the mean time, Kaiser and the Spartans will savor the new regional hardware. "It feels awesome," Kaiser said. "We knew we wanted to get this."
Setter Emily Bigger passes the ball during St. Joseph-Ogden's first set against Monticello at the Oakwood Regional on Thursday. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks) |
While teammate Lacey Kaiser (on the left) looks on while teammate Emily Bigger holds the team's new regional plaque for Payton Vallee to kiss. After beating Monticello 2-0, the Spartans advance in the IHSA volleyball postseason to face Seneca on Monday. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)
The Spartans advance to Monday's sectional semifinal against Seneca at Watseka. The Lady Irish defeated Manteno in both sets 25-22 to win the Peotone Regional. On Tuesday, they dropped the first set of their semifinal to Manteno 20-25 and came back to take the last two, 25-21, 25-21. The two teams are scheduled to start at 6pm. It will be back to work analyzing the Lady Irish for SJO, but in the mean time, Kaiser and the Spartans will savor the new regional hardware. "It feels awesome," Kaiser said. "We knew we wanted to get this."
Saturday, the St. Joseph-Ogden football team will meet Williamsville in the IHSA postseason for the second time in the Class 3A playoffs. This week's Throwback Thursday feature is a look back at their first meeting back on November 16 in 2013, when the Spartans defeated Williamsville in the quarterfinal matchup on their home turf, 38-26. In the photo above, SJO's Ryan Koss (54), Wesley Kibler (51) and Nick Poe (32) run through the team banner during team introductions. The trio, just a small part of the hard-hitting, determined Spartan team that season that went on to play in the state title game that season.
(Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks) 
Quarterback Dalton Walsh makes a short pass in the second half. The Spartans notched their first quarterfinal victory since 2006. The team advanced a semifinal road game in Greenville on the following Saturday. This Saturday, Walsh hopes to earn a second win against the Bullets, this time as one of SJO's assistant coaches. 
Linemen Seth Griswell and Nolan Woller provide an impenetrable wall on a pass play to protect their quarterback from Bullets defender Nathan Jerome. See more photos of Griswell 
Despite chilly temperatures and drizzle, hundreds of St. Joseph-Ogden fans were on hand to watch the Spartans win their quarterfinal football game. An equally as large of group of fans made the trip the following weekend to the semifinal game in Greenville.
(Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)
Jacob Buoy congratulates teammate Dylan Koss as the final 15 seconds tick off the game clock. Buoy, who suffered a season-ending injury, was on the sidelines assisting whenever necessary in Saturday night's home game. 