North Summit edges Rowland Hall

The Rowland Hall volleyball team was saying goodbye to its seniors and had nothing to lose. North Summit was trying to hold onto its No. 1 ranking and undefeated region season.

The result when the two squads met Tuesday night was a marathon volleyball match that took both teams to highs they hadn't experienced this season.

"That was tough," said Braves coach Samantha Stephens after North Summit held on to win the match 21-25, 25-19, 22-25, 25-18, 15-9. "That's the best I've ever seen Rowland Hall play. They were digging everything up ... That was the toughest match we've had this year."

The Braves struggled with serving, missing 23 in the match, while the Winged Lions were nearly perfect with just four missed serves.

"We've been struggling with that," said Stephens. "We've worked on it, but obviously we still need to cut down on missed serves."

It was the Braves depth that ultimately led them past Rowland Hall. Outside hitters Courtney Rognan and Monica Stephens still anchored the offense, but middle hitter Kelli Stuart swung the momentum in the Braves favor with near-perfect net play in the fourth and fifth games.

Stuart finished with 13 kills, while Rognan added nine kills and middle hitter Amy Donaldson added eight kills.

"It was so loud in here," said Stephens of the crowd that came out to support Rowland Hall. "I was trying to stay composed, but I was shaking the whole night. That was a tough match."

North Summit won the Richfield Invitational last weekend, beating 3A's Pine View in the championship match, but Stephens said beating region rival Rowland Hall was harder.

"That was 10 times harder, I felt," she said with a smile. "That will really help us to improve. To go five games in a match like that will help us."

Rowland Hall's head coach Kendra Tomsic echoed Stephens' sentiments.

"That was sweet," she said grinning. "My kids just never gave up. We had a few lulls, but I'm really proud of them. That was just a great team effort."

In a match where every play was crucial, both teams had contributions from every player who stepped on the court. The Winged Lions had especially impressive performances from their seniors. Middle hitter Carly Joesten was key at the net and led the team with 12 kills and 12 blocks. Senior outside hitter Molly Jones added 10 kills and five blocks, while setter Erin Lence, a sophomore, finished with 30 assists, six blocks and three aces.

"It was a great match to have as a warm-up for state," Tomsic said. "It was a great confidence builder, and just a good, uplifting night for my seniors."

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