Aberdeen Roncalli set the tone, set the pace, and eventually set up a spot in the semifinals of the Region 1A volleyball tournament.
The Cavaliers kept Milbank on its heels for the majority of a 25-11, 25-15, 25-10 opening round victory at Roncalli Gym Tuesday night.
“I’m super proud of the girls. I thought that they played very, very well tonight,” said Roncalli coach Leesa Ware. “There were a couple of points where I thought that we played kind of lazy on defense, but they came back and they definitely stepped up their game.”
The Cavaliers used their aggressiveness to secure high-percentage shots, which allowed them to keep the Bulldogs out of system.
“Offensively and defensively, I thought that we really took advantage of all of those free balls,,” Ware said, “just really took advantage of their errors tonight.”
With Roncalli dictating the points, the Bulldogs were forced to scramble and play defense, instead of running their offense.
“We didn’t have very good setups or effective ones that we could kill the ball with,” said Milbank coach Nancy Hoeke. “It was a lot of playing defense and just trying to get the ball in play.”
Hoeke knew what was happening, but altering it was a whole different challenge.
“We kept saying we’ve got to get in front of the 10-foot line. We’ve got to push the ball up there,” Hoeke said. “Very aware throughout the play that that wasn’t there, and that wasn’t happening for us.”
Jillian Ellwein jump started the Roncalli offense in the opening set, collecting three kills to stake the Cavaliers to a 9-5 lead.
“The mindset heading into the postseason is, it’s do or die. If we lose, we’re done,” Ellwein said. “Our goal from the start of the season is to make it to state, so it’s really important for us to win these games and not get down on ourselves. So, we really have been trying to keep up our energy so we can win games and make it to state.”
Ellwein ended up with a match-leading 12 kills to power the Roncalli offense.
“Jillian Ellwein had a very good night tonight. She was just on. She was playing well. She was playing aggressively,” Ware said. “We told her what was open, that tip right over the block, line shot was open, and she just executed it perfectly.”
The sophomore said the team watched film on the Bulldogs and had a game plan entering the contest.
“We already knew what their open spots were going into the game,” Ellwein said, “so we really did try to get those open spots to get those kills.”
What made things even more difficult for the Milbank defense is that Roncalli featured multiple hitters throughout the match. Rylee Voeller finished with eight kills, while Grace Cogley contributed seven.
“You have to be ready at all three attacking spots, and probably every rotation,” Hoeke said, “because when the setter’s up there that maybe gives us a little relief from that spot, but she’s a weapon as well and will send that second ball over.”
Ware noted that everyone who stepped onto the court played a role in her team’s victory.
“The stats are going to show that everybody really contributed tonight,” Ware said. “There wasn’t any player that was off tonight. Everyone did so well.”
Addison Pauli topped Milbank with five kills, but it wasn’t enough keep her team’s season alive.
“It was kind frustrating, but just try to stay positive, especially for our seniors,” Pauli said. “We didn’t want to end it like that. It’s unfortunate.”
The pace of Roncalli’s offensive attack limited what the Bulldogs were able to accomplish.
“It’s just really fast,” Pauli said. “It’s hard to get a pass to set and a good hit that’s in.”
Milbank capped its year with a 5-24 record.
“I’m just proud of my girls for putting themselves out there in a difficult situation,” Hoeke said. “Feeling like their backs are against the wall. … I’m proud of them for persevering through a tough season.”
The Bulldogs return the bulk of their squad for next season, losing four seniors to graduation.
“Hopefully our younger girls can start to step up now that our seniors are leaving,” Pauli said.
Roncalli, 17-11, will face Webster on Thursday night around 7:45 in Groton in the semifinals. The winner will advance to next week’s SoDak 16.
“Honestly, one single game at a time,” Ware said. “That’s all we can do.”
Serving: Milbank (Susie Schuneman 7-9 1 ace, Bailey Koepke 2-2 1 ace, Avery Schuneman 4-6, Evy Liebe 3-5); Aberdeen Roncalli (Cambry Feickert 2 aces, Ava Danielson 2 aces, Danica Zacher 1 ace, Rylee Dunker 1 ace).
Hitting: Milbank (Addison Pauli 11-14 5 kills, Koepke 7-10 3 kills, Kenzie Kooima 11-12 2 kills, Bree Townsend 6-6 2 kills); Aberdeen Roncalli (Jillian Ellwein 12 kills, Rylee Voeller 8 kills, Grace Cogley 7 kills, Karsyn Davis 3 kills).
Setting: Milbank (A. Schuneman 20-20 6 assists, S. Schuneman 15-14 4 assists); Aberdeen Roncalli (Elyana Roach 30 assists).
Digs: Milbank (Jacy Dexter 9, Zora Henrich 8, S. Schuneman 6); Aberdeen Roncalli (Feickert 16, Voeller 15, Morgan Helms 5).
Blocks: Milbank (Kooima 1 solo, Townsend 2 assists, Koepke 1 assist, Henrich 1 assist); Aberdeen Roncalli (Cogley 1 solo 3 assists, Davis 2 assists, Gabby Thomas 2 assists).
Records: Milbank 5-24; Aberdeen Roncalli 17-11.
