The St. Joseph Middle School eighth-grade volleyball team knows a thing or two about being the underdog.
As the 19-3 Panthers head into today’s IESA 7-3A State tournament against a 17-0 Quincy St. Peter team, they may appear to be the underdog based on records.
But Head Coach Jeremy Dassow knows his team has found a way to win all season.
“They tend to find a way to pull out the win,” Dassow said. “There have been several teams that we have gone against this year that we should have lost to. Those teams were much more physical than us, had better blocks or hitting, but our team didn’t give up.”
It all comes back to playing smart.
When the Panthers came up against a very tall and physical Mahomet-Seymour team, they lost the first set 25-12.
“After that I changed the game plan,” Dassow said. “We always talk in practice about playing smart, not playing hard. We work on going around the block, swinging to smart areas, and not going 100-percent on the swing every time. They executed the game plan and came back and won that set after getting blown out.”
Two of the Panther’s losses came during the Manteno Tournament where they were the only Class 3A team in a pool with 4A teams.
Dassow said he believes the experience was good for the girls, though.
“This kind of competition opens their eyes on what we need to work on,” he said. “After that tournament, we made some changes and haven’t lost a match since then.”
At the beginning of the season, the eighth-grade team set its sights on making the IESA State Tournament after losing in Sectional play last year.
The team’s postseason run has been up and down.
After coming out with their best match this season in a win over Hoopeston in Regional play, the team struggled against Bismarck-Henning.
Although the Panthers pulled out a win, capturing the Regional title 25-17 and 25-23, Dassow said some sloppy play kept the team from showcasing its best work.
But the Panthers quickly pulled the reigns around, focused on capturing their ticket to State. Facing Paxton, a team they had already beaten during regular season, the Panthers fell behind 8-0 in the first set.
“Once the nerves shook off, they remembered how to play, the wheels started rolling and we ended up winning that set 25-16.,” Dassow said. “After that, they keep the momentum and won the second set 25-12.
“They just always find a way to make it work as a team, and that is what I love about this team.”
The Panthers are sticking to the fundamentals as they set their sights on winning against Quincy tonight. The game is scheduled for a 5:45 p.m. start at Tolono Unity Junior High.
“We will push our focus on serving and serve receive,” Dassow said. “If you talk to any coach, even Pro and National team coaches for volleyball, they will talk about the serve/pass game of volleyball. If you can’t do those two things, you cannot win the game of volleyball.
“As much as the girls dislike serve-receive drills, they have realized that all of the practice on that is what has led us to the point where we are.”
