The Clarkson/Leigh Volleyball Team is EHC Tournament Champions for the 3rd year in a row after knocking off Oakland-Craig in 5 sets in Saturday’s Championship Match at Lyons-Decatur Northeast. The Patriots also beat Stanton 2-0 in the Semifinals on Saturday.
Jeff’s Stanton Recap:
Clarkson/Leigh won set one 25-17 and set two 25-20. Izzy Hollatz had 7 kills and 11 set assists while Brynn Settje totaled 14 digs. Kasik tallied 8 digs while Schneider recorded 12 set assists.
Jeff’s Oakland-Craig Recap:
The Knights won set one and lost set two 25-14 before winning set three 25-17. The Patriots took set four 29-27 and won set five 16-14. Izzy Hollatz had 16 kills, 17 digs, and 20 set assists while Baylee Settje recorded 13 kills and 7 blocks. Brynn Settje chipped in 11 digs and 19 digs while Kasik registered 8 digs and 16 set assists. Schneider posted 19 digs and 24 set assists while Indra and Vylet Hollatz tallied 18 and 9, digs, respectively. Head Coach Becky Schneider says the win says a lot about her team and their toughness and resiliency. “It was honestly just as thrilling as the first time we ever won the conference title (which happens to be against OC in 5 sets as well!). It’s one of those feelings that I don’t think would ever get old because our conference is so competitive, it’s tough to win multiple titles, let alone in a row! It’s a huge accomplishment and it truly reflects where these girls are physically and mentally. Our girls showed so much grit and tenacity in that match, and to be able to come from behind in that 4th set to push it to a 5th was huge; then to win that 5th set was even bigger!”
Schneider adds it was a total team effort. “There’s not one person that stood out for us, it truly was a team effort! Everybody knew their role and did their part! They all stepped up at different points throughout the match; it was definitely a collective effort for sure! That’s what makes this team so unique because we are so well-rounded and the players just compliment each other!”
Jeff’s Oakland-Craig Preview:
Clarkson/Leigh (27-2) takes on Oakland-Craig (26-5) on the road in Tuesday night’s regular season finale.
Jeff’s Take on the Match:
It’s going to be really tough for the Patriots to knock off the Knights on their home court this soon after an emotional EHC Tournament win. You know the Knights will be plenty fired up and motivated too. Clarkson/Leigh could still be hungover from the win and maybe not have as much drive and determination as Saturday just cause they already won the Conference Tournament and beat Oakland-Craig. The Patriots might be more lax in this match for that reason. Schneider says beating the Knights again won’t be easy, but it would be amazing if they did. “This is a big rematch and it would be huge if we could beat them again! We know going in that it’s going to be tough, especially coming off of the 5 set win in conference against them and playing on their home court! We are going to get their best game which is what we want because in the end, we get better regardless of the result!”
There’s no doubt that this match will only strengthen and bolster Clarkson/Leigh for the postseason, win or lose. And that in itself my friend is a victory.
