Girls volleyball: Providence Catholic’s depth on display in win over Resurrection

NEW LENOX – It didn’t seem to matter who was on the court Monday night for the Providence Catholic girls volleyball team.

Every player on the roster, all 14 Celtics, saw time on the floor and there was nary a dropoff in performance as Providence topped Resurrection College Prep, 25-20, 25-11 in the season-opening match.

“We really had two different lineups out there,” Providence coach Lee Rucinski said. “All 14 players played and played well. We had two different starting lineups for each set, so everyone started. And, you really couldn’t tell the difference between the lineups.”

Junior Payton Mandac closed the match out in style, serving four straight aces. She also had a team-high six kills. Freshman Abby Knight had four kills, as did senior Natalie Papes and senior Olivia Stepanek. Senior Kylie Williams had a team-leading 10 assists, while freshmen Demo Carbone and Delaney Purtill had five each.

“I will take 20 assists in a short match like this every time,” Rucinski said. “They did a good job of spreading the ball around, and our hitters put the balls down.

“It was really nice to see three freshmen playing in their first varsity match and playing like they belonged.”

Mandac was a constant for the Celtics, as she got the first kill of the season and closed the match with four aces.

“This was a nice start to the season,” Mandac said. “We had a plan of serving to the 1 or 5 spot and it worked. It was great to see all the girls contribute. That’s how our team is going to be this year.”

Providence pulled out to a 10-4 lead in the first set before a Resurrection timeout, using two kills by Papes, one by Mandac, one by Knight on her first varsity swing and one by Cameron Sicinski. The Celtics maintained their advantage, at one point taking an 18-10 lead. Resurrection rallied and pulled to within 20-19 when Lindsay Komak sandwiched a pair of kills around one by teammate Sam Washkevich. The Celtics, however, regrouped and outscored the Bandits, 6-1, to close out the first set.

The second set began much the same as the first, with Providence grabbing a 10-4 lead and forcing a Resurrection timeout. There was no answer by Resurrection this time, as Stepanek served three straight points, getting a pair of kills by Knight, and Williams had a five-point service run that included two aces before Mandac’s four aces ended it.

“We played really well tonight,” Rucinski said. “We didn’t really show any weak spots. Some people might think it’s hard to coach a roster full of girls that can play as well as these girls can, with everyone wanting playing time. To me, it’s a blessing.

“With everyone so evenly skilled the gym at practice is super competitive. That is only going to make everyone better, because everyone is fighting for playing time, and practicing against girls as talented as they are will only make them better.

“We know it’s a long season and there will be ups and downs, but this was a really good way to start.”