When Roger Bacon volleyball faced Wyoming on Aug. 28, it took five sets for the Spartans to win the match. That wasn’t the case in the Ohio High School Athletic Association Division II regional semifinal Thursday.
In the second meeting between the two this season, Roger Bacon controlled most of the match on the way to its fourth consecutive regional final appearance, beating Wyoming in straight sets, 25-17, 25-14, 25-20.
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In the minds of both coaches, there were plenty of differences between the first match in August and Thursday’s semifinal. Heading into the August match, Wyoming (23-4) was the fourth team Roger Bacon (19-6) had faced in three days. This time around, the Spartans had four days off to prepare for the rematch.
“Not to say that we were tired (in August), but we were pushed to our limit (and) we were still able to succeed there,” Roger Bacon coach Alyssa Flading said. “We knew coming into this one that we were going to be a little more well-rested, and we’d already had a chance to play them, so we knew where they would be going and we’ve been preparing all week.”
After surviving that grueling stretch of its early schedule, Flading feels like it has made a difference in Roger Bacon’s mentality throughout the rest of the season.
“It definitely mentally prepared us,” Flading said. “(Assistant coach Nick Wilking) said in the locker room when we beat CHCA in our first match of the year, ‘You’re gonna remember this match at the end of the season.’ Then, when we lost in five to Fenwick, he said, ‘You’re going to remember this match, too, and know the feeling, the difference between the two and where you want to be at the end of the tournament.’”
With fresh legs and almost a week to prepare, Roger Bacon executed its plan to near perfection. The Spartans tallied 13 service aces, led by freshman Mariah Gaines’ five. That’s the stat that stuck out to Wyoming coach Jim Delong.
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“They served us off the floor,” Delong said. “They served phenomenally, and we struggled to pass in serve receive, which took us out of our offense and made us predictable. To me, that was it. They served a lot better than we did.”
Six of Roger Bacon’s aces came in the first set after Wyoming had jumped out to a 5-1 lead early in the match. It started with two from freshman Ally Hughes, the first of which gave the Spartans their first lead of the set at 7-6. Soon after, three aces in five serves from Gaines put Roger Bacon in the driver’s seat for the rest of the set.
After its early 5-1 lead was erased, Wyoming never led again, as the energy and execution from Roger Bacon looked overwhelming at times.
“I think we were all just, we were all hyped. We were all talking and being really loud and getting really excited,” Roger Bacon sophomore Kelsey Niesen said. “We all believed in each other, and this week during practice, we were all pushing each other really hard. We wanted to beat this team really bad. We have some history with this team.”
With the two schools less than 10 miles apart, the teams face each other every year, which Flading said can lead to the feel of a rivalry when they meet.
Niesen’s hype showed on the court. She finished with a double-double, posting a team-high 11 kills, 10 digs and two aces.
The second set was the most lopsided of the night. The Spartans seized an 8-2 and forced an early Wyoming timeout with the help of a couple more aces. Roger Bacon’s lead was never below four points in the set after its hot start, cruising to a double-digit win in set two.
Wyoming showed a lot of fight in the final set, though. After falling behind 16-7 in the third set, Wyoming tried to rally, pulling within three at 19-16 before Roger Bacon called a timeout, regrouped and slammed the door shut to end the match.
“I think we all just had to calm down and take a deep breath and reset before we continued, and we came back very strong,” Niesen said.
Afterward, there was a lot of emotion showing as Wyoming exited its locker room. It was the final high-school match for Wyoming seniors Kat Hinkel, Lauren Turner, Jenna Deneka and Emma Galinger.
“I feel terrible for them,” Delong said. “We have four tremendous young women who are seniors for us, and it was their last chance to play high school volleyball, so I feel for them.”
Roger Bacon will face Badin, who beat Fenwick. The Spartans have faced both teams this season, beating Badin in straight sets and losing to Fenwick in five sets.
The regional final is scheduled for noon Saturday at Butler High School.
Flading hopes her team’s past regional final experience can pay off Saturday.
“We’re just talking about playing calm, cool and collected,” Flading said. “We know what we’re capable of doing and we know we can win tough matches.”
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