Morris volleyball falls to Manteno in regional championship

MANTENO — The Morris volleyball team proved what a scrappy bunch they are Thursday in the Class 3A Manteno Regional championship match.

In each set, the Redskins faced at least a five-point deficit, and sometimes even larger. Still, they were able to give the top seed everything it wanted before dropping a 23-25, 25-11, 25-21 decision.

"Our girls fought all night," Morris coach Taylor Lafond said. "We just had too many errors, and Manteno is a very fundamentally sound team. They don't overpower you, but they don't make mistakes and beat themselves."

Manteno jumped out to a quick 7-2 lead in the opening set, but Morris rallied to pull to within 10-8. Manteno, which plays Champaign Central in the Pontiac Central on Monday, then built the lead back to 16-10 before Morris, which finishes with a 15-19-2 record, began to chip away again.

After Ashley Hood got a kill to make it 16-11, she served three straight points, including an ace, to bring Morris to within 16-14. Hood finished with 25 assists, seven kills, 12 digs and two aces.The teams traded points until it was 20-18 in favor of Manteno before Hood got another kill and Hali Finn delivered a block to tie it at 20, forcing a Manteno timeout.

Morris took a 21-20 lead on Olivia Schultz's serve before Manteno's Kaycie Wenzel got a kill to tie it. Manteno went up 22-21 on a Morris hitting error, but the Redskins tied it on a kill by Abby Bruyn. Wenzel got a kill to put Manteno ahead 23-22 before Nicole Guth tied it for Morris with a kill. A net violation by Manteno and a kill by Calleen Soper ended the first set with a Morris victory.

Soper had a team-leading 12 kills, while Finn had six kills and Guth had three kills and two solo blocks. Paige Valentine had nine digs and Bruyn added two kills and four digs.

Manteno did not allow such a comeback in the second set, racing to a 6-2 lead that grew to 19-8. An ace by Schultz brought Morris to within 21-11, but Manteno scored the final four points to take the set and tie the match.

In the winner-take-all third set, Manteno again took the early lead, posting advantages of 5-0, 8-2 and 9-3 before Morris again began to whittle away at the deficit. An ace by Sydney Trotter pulled the Redskins to within 13-9, but Manteno went on a 5-0 run to make it 18-9. With Hood at the service line, Morris rallied to within 18-14. A kill by Guth got it to 19-15, and Krista Runchey served an ace to close to within 19-16. Finn had kills that made it 20-18 and 21-19. A kill by Soper brought Morris to within 23-21, but Wenzel delivered two straight kills to end the match.

"We played well most of the night," Lafond said. "This year, it was truly a team effort. All the girls came together and knew their role and played it well. The seniors really had great leadership for us and kept us consistent."