The Notre Dame Pandas ventured up to Chicago to face some of the best teams in the country and came away with a runner-up finish.
The Pandas (24-3) first beat North Branch (Michigan) in the quarterfinals then avenged their lone in-state loss of the season besting the Assumption Rockets, 2-1 (24-26, 25-15, 29-27) in the semifinals, moving their record to 5-1 against the other four Dominant Five teams. Against the Rockets, Notre Dame had 38 kills, 15 blocks, 38 assists, 53 digs and five aces.
“We definitely took some steps forward in the Assumption match,” said Jenna Leistner, Notre Dame co-head coach. “It was an absolute battle. We just showed the fight, grit and determination to get the win. With that score in the third, you can tell it was such a back-and-forth, great game of volleyball. It was a great game.”
Libero Julia Grace earned a spot on the all-tournament team recording 12 digs and three aces in the win. Lacey Hostetler added 10 digs. Setter Lizzy Larkins 21 assists and seven digs with hitter Ava Tilden recording eight kills and seven digs. Notre Dame’s other setter Lauren Ott had 13 assists and five digs.
A number of players helped the Pandas control the net. Grace Portwood had eight kills with Ava Erpenbeck and Riley McCloskey putting up seven kills and three blocks each. Audrey Dyas had five kills and five blocks with Ella Goetz recording three kills, three blocks, four digs and two aces.
Notre Dame then lost to Mother McAuley (Illinois), 2-0 (25-20, 25-18) in the gold championship game. The Pandas had 24 kills, nine blocks, 24 assists, 42 digs and three aces. Hostetler and Grace had 12 and nine digs respectively.
Ott led the Pandas with 13 assists with Tilden and Goetz recording six kills each. Goetz and Erpenbeck had three blocks each.
Notre Dame plays host to Ryle (18-9) on Thursday at 7 p.m. in a battle of 9th Region powers.
Other Volleyball Scores
Jefferson County Volleyball Invitational
Beechwood 2, South Oldham 0 (25-23, 25-19)
Beechwood 2, Oldham County 0 (25-15, 26-24)
Elizabethtown 2, Beechwood 1 (26-24, 19-25, 25-22)
Cooper 2, Collins 0 (25-18, 25-14)
Madison Central 2, Cooper 1 (25-21, 17-25, 25-17)
Logan County 2, Cooper 0 (25-9, 25-22)
Fillie Fall Fling at Harrison County
Fleming County 2, Ludlow 0 (25-11, 26-24)
George Rogers Clark 2, Ludlow 0 (25-9, 25-12)
Rowan County 2, Ludlow 0 (25-18, 25-19)
Harrison County 2, Ludlow 0 (25-18, 25-15)
Girls Soccer
Highlands 3, South Oldham 2
The Bluebirds concluded the regular season with a win over the defending state champions on the road.
Highlands (14-2-3) outshot South Oldham, 9-6. Goalkeeper Natalie Hinegardner had four saves for the Bluebirds.
The Bluebirds led 2-0 at halftime. But after South Oldham (10-6-1) tied it up, Sophia Agin drew a penalty kick and Kate Jamie finished it with 13 minutes left for the game-winner.
“There are two things that happened. I think we all learned a lesson about letting up with a bit of a lead and a lot of time to go,” said Chris Norris, Highlands head coach. “Anytime you get punched in the nose a bit, it brings you back to reality. We really buckled down for the last 15 minutes of the half and it showed. We had to fight to maintain possession of the ball in the last 10 minutes and get out of there with a win.”
Laney Smith had one goal and one assist to lead the Bluebirds. Franny Smith had the other goal and Lindsay Stein had an assist.
“I think in the first 20 minutes (after halftime), I think we kind of went out with not a bunch of confidence,” Laney Smith said. “We thought we were going to get away easy with winning. But we can not think that way because from now on, we’re going to be playing the best in the region and state. But I’m proud of how we handled it when they tied it. We wanted it more. We just need to keep that competitive attitude for the whole game.”
Highlands plays host to Dayton (7-8-1) in the 36th District semifinals on Monday at 6 p.m.
Other Girls Soccer Scores
Calvary Christian 1, Holmes 0 (forfeit)
Ludlow 1, Calvary Christian 1
Newport Central Catholic 3, Pendleton County 3
Boys Soccer Scores
Bishop Brossart 2, Simon Kenton 1
Covington Catholic 2, Beechwood 0
Newport Central Catholic 6, Pendleton County 0
Highlands 4, St. Henry 1
