While it was a home game for Notre Dame in the first round of the KHSAA state volleyball tournament, the green-clad faithful from Bishop Brossart were certainly present in the building.
The Mustang faithful showed up, but it was business as usual for Notre Dame, which took down the Lady ‘Stangs in straight sets, 3-0 (25-16, 25-20, 25-14), to advance to Friday’s quarterfinals at George Rogers Clark.
The Pandas were dominant at the net, aggressive in their service game and utilized runs throughout each set to prevail.
It was a clear case of throwing records out the window when the two teams met. Brossart entered the match at 36-3, having breezed through a 10th Region that didn’t feature any teams in the top 25 of the final Kentucky Volleyball Coaches Association poll. The small “A” school had put together an impressive season, but Notre Dame entered with 11 losses, its most in a season since 2019. Among those 11 were losses to 9th Region foes Beechwood and St. Henry.
“We really did have a strength of schedule and we played a lot of good teams to start the season,” Pandas co-coach Hannah Colvin said. “So while our record might not be as good as theirs, I feel like we’ve had a really good strength of schedule, and I feel like we’ve really learned from the losses that we’ve had, and we’ve taken that and helped us grow as a team for the rest of the season. Once you get to postseason, it’s 0-0, and it’s one and done. So, what you learn from those wins and losses is what you can take into the rest of the season.”
While the Mustangs showed they belonged, the Pandas were simply too diverse and powerful in the contest. Notre Dame tallied 46 kills in the match to Brossart’s 29.
“It felt like the ball would not hit the floor,” Colvin said. “They were scrappy. They were going all out. They really gave that game everything that they got, and I was really impressed by them. They ran a pretty fast offense too, which sometimes stunned our block a little bit.”
PHOTOS: Slideshow provided by Charles Bolton
Brossart’s raucous crowd, fueled by its student section, made its presence felt early. The Mustangs extended rallies and pulled within one at 7-6 in the first set after an Audrey Arnold kill.
As in each set, however, Notre Dame’s runs made the difference. In the first, a 7-1 Pandas run pushed them ahead 14-7. Brossart got no closer than five from there, as Makayla Roose was a force for Notre Dame with four kills, two aces and two blocks. Teagan Kondik and Emma Redlinger also made their presence felt, with Kondik recording five kills and a block in the set and Redlinger adding four kills.
“I think our hitting was really good,” Redlinger said. “I think we hit a lot of different shots and did a lot of different routes, so that really made them frazzled.”
If there was a set to be had for Brossart, the second was it. The Mustangs didn’t get off to the best start, finding themselves down 8-3 and 13-8, but rallied to pull within three at 19-16, forcing Notre Dame into its only timeout of the match. Evelyn Laker and Arnold were pivotal for the Lady ‘Stangs in the set, with Laker tallying eight kills and Arnold adding three kills and a block.
The Pandas responded out of the timeout with two straight points to make it 21-16 after an Elise Grout kill. Brossart couldn’t get closer than four from there as Notre Dame took a 2-0 lead.
Notre Dame made the third set look a little easier. The Pandas jumped out to leads of 6-2, 9-4 and 15-8 before closing out the match.
Roose led Notre Dame with 14 kills, followed by Kondik with 13 and Redlinger with 10. Ellie Osterkamp tallied 39 assists, while Roose led the team with four aces. Kaia Tilden finished with 23 digs.
The Pandas will face West Jessamine in Friday’s quarterfinals at 5 p.m. at George Rogers Clark.
“I think a lot of the pressure is off,” Colvin said. “There was a lot of pressure that we are put on ourselves to win region, and so now we can just play volleyball. We can have fun, and we can play together. We’re focusing on taking some of the pressure off of ourselves and just going into taking it one game at a time.”
Brossart’s season may have come to a close, but it certainly won’t be forgotten in Alexandria anytime soon. The Mustangs won both the 10th Region All “A” and 10th Region titles, claiming the second regional championship in program history. They also captured a 37th District title and had KVCA Coach of the Year Danielle French and Player of the Year Callie Ritter. Brossart will graduate seven seniors.
NOTRE DAME def. BISHOP BROSSART, 3-0 (25-16, 25-20, 25-14)
Game Stats
Kills: Brossart 29, Notre Dame 46
Aces: Brossart 4, Notre Dame 9
Errors: Brossart 9, Notre Dame 11
Service Errors: Brossart 2, Notre Dame 3
Blocks: Brossart 2, Notre Dame 13
Records: Bishop Brossart 36-4, Notre Dame 26-11
