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By Jim Isabella
Special to the Beacon Journal
POSTED: 08:56 p.m. EST, Nov 07, 2009
HUDSON: Stow has done what seemed to the rest of the high school volleyball world to be the impossible dream.
The Bulldogs have reached the Division I state tournament after defeating Painesville Riverside (24-4) 3-1 in the Hudson Division I regional final at Hyser Gymnasium.
Stow (15-11) will play at noon Thursday in the Division I state semifinal at the Nutter Center at Wright State University in Fairborn.
It is the first time the Bulldogs have reached the state's final four since 1997. Stow, which has four state titles under former coach Bob McFarland, last won a state championship in 1992.
''I'm just overwhelmed right now. . . . All our hard work has paid off. Our team really deserves this,'' senior co-captain Charlotte Sykora said. ''Last year, we said we were going to states. This year we knew we were going to go, but it would be a tough ride.''
Last season, the Bulldogs reached the regional semifinal before losing to Brecksville-Broadview Heights. Stow entered the postseason with a 9-11 record, but now has won six in a row.
''I made the statement after our first tryout that we had state championship ability with all the red flags of underachieving immaturity,'' Stow coach Scott Carter said. ''For the first half of the season, when we were 5-9, our immaturity kind of haunted us a bit.
''We had to learn how to be a team. We had to prioritize us instead of I.''
So what has changed since the team's low point?
''Coach Carter broke us down. He had to break us down to build us back up. At times, it was really, really hard, but then after that, our [confidence] built back up,'' Sykora said.
The Bulldogs won the first two games with their steady passing, blocking and digs, winning 25-16 and 25-21.
The offense was set up by sophomore Kelly Vitt, who had 36 assists, and finished off by junior Jenn Chilinski, who had nine kills, as well as Sykora, junior Jackie Close and senior co-captain Colleen Bonacci, each with eight kills.
The defense, led by junior libero Lizzy McDade's 26 digs, frustrated the Beavers throughout the match.
Riverside won the third game 25-21 and had momentum in the fourth with an early 7-1 lead. Slowly, the Bulldogs worked their way back, tying the game three times before going ahead for good 16-15 and finally punching their ticket to state by winning 25-20.
Like their crazy fans dressed in hunters' outfits, the Bulldogs are heading south to go big-game hunting, looking for the ultimate prize — a big trophy.
HUDSON: Stow has done what seemed to the rest of the high school volleyball world to be the impossible dream.
The Bulldogs have reached the Division I state tournament after defeating Painesville Riverside (24-4) 3-1 in the Hudson Division I regional final at Hyser Gymnasium.
Stow (15-11) will play at noon Thursday in the Division I state semifinal at the Nutter Center at Wright State University in Fairborn.
It is the first time the Bulldogs have reached the state's final four since 1997. Stow, which has four state titles under former coach Bob McFarland, last won a state championship in 1992.
''I'm just overwhelmed right now. . . . All our hard work has paid off. Our team really deserves this,'' senior co-captain Charlotte Sykora said. ''Last year, we said we were going to states. This year we knew we were going to go, but it would be a tough ride.''
Last season, the Bulldogs reached the regional semifinal before losing to Brecksville-Broadview Heights. Stow entered the postseason with a 9-11 record, but now has won six in a row.
''I made the statement after our first tryout that we had state championship ability with all the red flags of underachieving immaturity,'' Stow coach Scott Carter said. ''For the first half of the season, when we were 5-9, our immaturity kind of haunted us a bit.
''We had to learn how to be a team. We had to prioritize us instead of I.''
So what has changed since the team's low point?
''Coach Carter broke us down. He had to break us down to build us back up. At times, it was really, really hard, but then after that, our [confidence] built back up,'' Sykora said.
The Bulldogs won the first two games with their steady passing, blocking and digs, winning 25-16 and 25-21.
The offense was set up by sophomore Kelly Vitt, who had 36 assists, and finished off by junior Jenn Chilinski, who had nine kills, as well as Sykora, junior Jackie Close and senior co-captain Colleen Bonacci, each with eight kills.
The defense, led by junior libero Lizzy McDade's 26 digs, frustrated the Beavers throughout the match.
Riverside won the third game 25-21 and had momentum in the fourth with an early 7-1 lead. Slowly, the Bulldogs worked their way back, tying the game three times before going ahead for good 16-15 and finally punching their ticket to state by winning 25-20.
Like their crazy fans dressed in hunters' outfits, the Bulldogs are heading south to go big-game hunting, looking for the ultimate prize — a big trophy.
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