The Ryle Raiders volleyball team (22-15 overall) has been a fixture in the region tournament during Tasha Lovins’s 21-year tenure as head coach, missing it just one time in her second season in 2003.
Ryle won its 14th district championship Wednesday with a 3-1 victory over the host Conner Cougars (21-12) by scores of 25-18, 25-27, 25-23, 25-23.
The Raiders knew it would be a challenge facing the crowd at John L. Crigler Gymnasium and considering Conner had not been in that spot since 2005 seeking its first district tournament championship in program history.
“It’s always special to anybody. But to (Conner) there was something a little extra special and they’re a great team,” Lovins said. “We went in like, ‘Hey. We can do this.’ We knew it would get rowdy. But at the same time, we needed to stay focused, regroup and do what we needed to do.”
The Raiders trailed 17-12 at one point in the fourth game but came back to win, avoiding the fifth game, finishing it when sophomore Rebecca Kramer landed a kill off a Conner block out of bounds on an assist from junior setter/hitter Kiana Dinn.
Dinn, the tournament’s most valuable playe, had 24 kills to go with 15 assists, four blocks and two aces.
“I bring a lot of diversity on the court because I can hit from either pin,” Dinn said. “My setter does a great job getting the ball to me when she can. I feel that puts a lot of pressure on opponents because they never know where the ball is coming from. We made sure to play our game, support each other and shake off any mistake the entire game.”
Ryle had 44 digs, 46 kills, 41 assists, five blocks and 13 aces unofficially. Freshman Morgan Heater had 23 digs, six kills and three aces to aid the cause.
“I think we really stayed disciplined in the back row and we really cheer each other,” Heater said. “We usually get down in our heads. But we really needed to focus on the next play if we lost that point.”
The Ryle serving helped keep Conner out of rhythm limiting the touches of junior power hitters Lilly Hamburg and Peyton Walker. Junior defensive specialist Clara Hansel led Ryle with four aces.
“Every coach will tell say you have to control what’s on your side and that starts with the serve,” Hansel said. “So being able to control our serve is really important. I’m really happy I can help my team and get aces. I tried to put it where I felt they couldn’t get it so they couldn’t get it to Walker and Hamburg. They’re great hitters so to keep it away from them not only helped our front row, but our back row (as well).”
Senior setter Maddie Clark and junior defensive specialist Alexis Woolf continued to do their things earning all-district honors. Clark had 20 assists and Wolf recorded 14 digs and two aces.
Kramer and sophomore hitter Olivia Karlosky gave Ryle that needed balance with six kills each. Karlosky had two aces.
“It was nerve-racking back-and-forth. Even when we hit 24, you knew you didn’t seal the deal. You still had to fight for that 25,” Lovins said. “I have a lot of grey hair going on. We moved the ball around because we knew they were going to double-team Kiana so we talked to Kiana about getting blocked and working on some shots. Other people had to step up and do their part.”
Conner finished with 41 kills, 27 assists, 10 blocks, 24 digs and seven aces unofficially. Hamburg had 12 kills and three blocks with Walker putting down nine kills and blocking three. Junior hustling defensive specialist Anna Hamilton had 12 digs and three aces with junior setter/defensive specialist Aubrey Depenbrock recording 17 assists and three aces. Junior setter Jordan Ransdell added six assists and junior right side hitter Jordan Potter had five kills and two blocks.
“I feel like we outplayed them and yet in the end, they were able to put a string of points together to come back and win the game,” said Douglas Rabe, Conner Head Coach. “I think our girls will learn from this. Maybe there’s something about Conner that brings out the best in Ryle. I still thought we could have pushed them to five.”
Conner still has not lost sight of how much the culture has changed. The Cougars beat Cooper in the 33rd District semifinals ending an 11-year run of Cooper and Ryle representing the 33rd District in the 9th Region Tournament.
“This is what we needed and will be motivation for next year,” Hamburg said. “We haven’t taken a set from Ryle in a while. I’m really excited to get going for regionals and hopefully, we perform the way we can.”
Ryle plays host to the region tournament starting Monday. The Raiders take on Newport Central Catholic, Dixie Heights, or the loser of Thursday’s 35th District championship between Notre Dame and Holy Cross. Conner plays Highlands, St. Henry, or the winner of the 35th District title game.
36th District Championship at Newport
Highlands 3, Newport Central Catholic 2
The Bluebirds (19-13) won their sixth straight district tournament championship after trailing 2-1 against the Thoroughbreds (15-17). But this one had one unique obstacle they overcame.
Highlands has been without first-year head coach Michelle Woods and assistant coach Kat Sickinger for a week. Highlands Director of Athletics Wes Caldwell said junior varsity head coach Brooke Meier will be the interim head coach for the rest of the season. When reached by text, Woods said she did not want to add anything to the story in order to not be a distraction from the game.
“Both the varsity coach and varsity assistant have resigned,” Caldwell said. “At the season’s end, we will evaluate our program like we do all others and will determine next steps to grow our program.”
NewCath won the first game 25-23, then took the third game 26-24 after Highlands won the second game 25-14. But the Bluebirds won the fourth game 25-19 then carried the momentum into the fifth game winning it 15-6.
“It really just comes down to the face that they trust each other and they trust us,” Meier said. “The whole group constantly fights for every ball, every point. They knew coming in here that NewCath wanted it. But I think they just wanted it more.”
It started with the defense and serving. Highlands had 85 digs and seven aces. Junior libero Annie Ellison had 25 digs. Then senior hitter Bailey Houston and freshman libero Hayden Gessner had 18 and 16 respectively. NewCath had some luck with tips and setter dumps in the first couple games. But Highlands covered them better in the fourth and fifth games.
“We just had to make a lot of adjustments against (the tipping),” Ellison said. “Once we did, we were fine. When our hitters go up for blocks, we have to trust each other to cover or they will not go up for the blocks.”
Houston finished with four aces and 13 kills overall. Highlands had 23 blocks and 42 kills. Houston had 13 kills and junior outside hitter Rachel Ossege had 11 kills and six blocks. Senior Emma Daly added six blocks.
“I think the situation made us come together as a stronger team and make us want to bond together a little more so we came together on the court as well,” said Carly Cramer, Highlands senior opposite hitter. “I think everyone even the bench had the most energy we’ve had all season. Beating them in the regular season as well had more of an impact on us.”
The Bluebirds also had 43 assists using a two-setter attack. Senior Kenzi Vennefron had 26 assists and sophomore Ella Cox had 15.
Highlands scored the first three points of the fifth game and never looked back building a 7-3 lead forcing a NewCath time-out. Ossege had four kills in that game before Houston finished the game with an ace.
“Energy had a lot to do with the momentum,” Ossege said. “Our setters did a good job putting us in good positions to finish.”
Highlands will face Conner, Dixie Heights, or the loser of the 35th District championship, either Notre Dame or Holy Cross in the quarterfinals at Ryle. NewCath will take on Ryle, St. Henry, or the 35th District winner.
34th District Championship at Villa Madonna
St. Henry 3, Dixie Heights 0
The Crusaders (24-7) won 25-11, 25-12, 25-15 to claim another district crown against the Colonels (15-9). Junior hitter Alivia Skidmore won the tournament’s most valuable player honors with senior Macy Lentz and junior Anna Guard making the all-tournament team.
St. Henry plays NewCath, Conner or the 35th District runner-up in Notre Dame or Holy Cross in the quarterfinals at Ryle. Dixie Heights takes on Highlands, Ryle or the 35th District winner.
32nd District Championship at Williamstown
Simon Kenton 3, Grant County 0
The Pioneers (15-19) beat the Braves (10-9) in three by 25-13, 25-15, 25-16 scores to win their fifth straight district tournament championship.
“We actually did exactly what we needed to do,” said Amy Marx, Simon Kenton Head Coach. “We served the ball aggressively and we put the ball down when we needed to. They have a few girls that play club ball and some multi-sport athletes. They also have some height on their team so you can never take them for granted.”
Junior all-around Sophie Spainer won tournament most valuable player honors with 12 kills and six aces. All-Disitrict and sophomore captain setter and middle hitter Keira Hans had 29 digs and 10 kills. All-District junior hitter Alisha Hawkins added eight kills.
“We stayed focused, kept pushing and did not let it get into our heads that it’s going to be easy because we already beat them,” Hans said. “It shows a lot. We started out a little rocky. But we got it together and started executing.”
The 8th Region Tournament takes place at Eminence High School starting Monday. Simon Kenton will take on Trimble County, Collins, Woodford County or South Oldham in the region quarterfinals.