Volleyball: Georgia Watson, Huntley hand Hampshire first FVC loss

HUNTLEY – Georgia Watson didn’t feel that Huntley’s two-set loss to Crystal Lake Central on Aug. 27 to open Fox Valley Conference play was indicative of who the Red Raiders are or will be.

“That was a game where we tended to be less aggressive than we should have,” said Watson, a 6-foot-3 senior outside hitter who is committed to Kentucky. “For us, that was a very big moment for us. It was a rough loss for us.”

Watson and the rest of her teammates have been locked in since that loss.

On Tuesday, Huntley staved off three set points in the opening set and rode that momentum to a 28-26, 25-13 sweep against Hampshire – handing the Whip-Purs their first FVC loss of the season.

Huntley and Hampshire are each one of four teams with a 4-1 mark in the FVC, along with Crystal Lake Central and Burlington Central. Crystal Lake Central lost is first FVC match in three sets against Crystal Lake South on Tuesday.

“I think it’s definitely been motivation for us,” said Huntley coach Karen Naymola, who earned her 500th career victory last week. “That first conference game, maybe there were nerves. Maybe it was a little bit of us coming out and not being as confident as we should have.”

The Raiders (5-1), who own a 39-2 record in conference play since the start of 2022, didn’t lack confidence Tuesday.

Watson led everybody with 16 kills, including nine in the first set. The teams were tied 17 times in the first set. Hampshire (7-2) had three set points, leading 24-21 after a cross-court shot by junior outside hitter Elizabeth King (six kills), but couldn’t put Huntley away.

Huntley scored the next three points on a kill by Diellza Sejdini (six kills), a block by Jocelyn Erling (three blocks, two kills) and another by from Sejdini.

The teams were tied at 24, 25 and 26 before the Raiders scored back-to-back points to take the opening set.

The first point came on a great defensive effort by Huntley, with junior libero Alex Goritz laying out for a point-saving dig near the net. Sejdini then reached out and kept the ball in the air with a one-handed dig, and junior setter Abby Whitehouse sent a ball over that wasn’t controlled by Hampshire.

Watson ended the first set with her ninth kill on a backward set by Whitehouse.

“I was like, ‘I have to go all out, there’s no other option,’ ” Goritz said of her defensive play. “My teammates were going all out, so I had to do my part and make sure I put in the effort, too.”

Naymola said Goritz’s demeanor reminds of a previous leader for the Raiders.

“I thought she did a really good job on serve receive,” Naymola said. “Last year, [2024 grad] Morgan Jones [now at Missouri] was the calmness on the court for us. Just super composed, the game would be on the line and she kind of kept everybody cool.

“I think this year the calmness for us is Alex. You never see her get super excited, but you never see her get nervous or down. She does a great job of bringing the whole team together.”

After dropping a close first set, Hampshire went down 6-1 in the second and was unable to recover.

“I think it was just a mental [letdown],” Whips first-year coach Omar Cortez said. “They went on a nice run, and we couldn’t recover mentally. And it definitely plays a factor when you’ve got Georgia Watson on the other side. She definitely was a game changer for them.

“It’s great to see where we stand against a powerhouse like Huntley. When we play a clean game and play our ball, we can keep up with teams like this.”

Hampshire was led by senior Jorah Rutter with seven kills, Kylie Lambert with 13 assists and Katelyn Petterson with three kills, a block and an ace.

Abby Whitehouse had 14 assists and four digs for Huntley, Goritz added seven digs and two aces, and Emily Ernst had nine assists and an ace. Izzy Whitehouse had two aces.

Watson was excited to play a quality team like Hampshire, with players on both sides very familiar with each other.

“I was a little amped up,” said Watson, who added four digs, a block and an ace to go with her 16 kills. “We’re not a team to just lay down and be fine with it. We fight for everything. We’re aggressive in every aspect of our game. That’s what you have to do, especially when you play teams like Hampshire.”