Coming into postseason play with a record of 18-1, most seventh-grade athletes might think they have each game in the bag.
But the St. Joseph Middle School seventh-grade volleyball team entered into IESA Sectional play with apprehension.
After claiming the Regional title by defeating Westville 25-8 and 25-19, then Georgetown Mary Miller 25-12 and 25-10, the Panthers knew they had a challenge ahead as they faced Kankakee Bishop McNamara on Monday.
The Panthers fell behind 10-2 in the first set.
“It was as if the girls came out unable to breathe, unable to to move. Their nerves got the best of them,” head coach Stephanie Kinney said.
Unable to recover, the Panthers lost the first set 25-17, but they did not lose hope.
St. Joseph and Bishop McNamara went toe-to-toe the first six points of the second set.
“We hit a rough serve receive patch and then found our stride to win the set 25-16,” Kinney said.
“During this second set our team came together like never before.
“The players on the court were in sync; the players on the bench were fighting right there with them cheering them through every point. The way they supported each other and pushed each other was what made the difference.
“The girls wanted this win as a team. They wanted this win for each other and all they had worked for. I hadn’t seen the players volley so smoothly all season and it wouldn’t have worked without every players’ fight and support.”
Bishop McNamara wasn’t about to give up, though. Finding their own stride, the Panthers had to fight for every point to pull together the 25-20 third-set win that secured the IESA Sectional Championship.
“Our success is because of our cohesive team respect, love, and support,” Kinney said. “We are in this together and will win or lose together..”
Kinney believes there are two ingredients that have led to the Panthers’ success in 2019: skill and teamwork.
Pushing the team in practice, Kinney, alongside assistant coach Jeremy Dassow, taught the girls fundamentals and rotation.
“This team has accomplished so much in their skill progress,” Kinney said. “Their work ethic during practice has pushed them beyond my expectations individually and as a team. They learned the play of volleyball and to appreciate being a team very quickly, which validates their success.
“They all want to do well and want each other to be successful. Each one of them have different individual goals to achieve and we all encourage one another on those goals no matter how simple or complicated the goal might be. This mentality is what has brought this team to state.”
Part of Kinney and Dassow’s vision as seventh- and eighth-grade coaches is to bring both units together throughout the season.
“Coach Dassow and I are well aware of the blessing it is to be able to coach such great kids,” Kinney said. “Coach Dassow and I work every year showing the players how to be a community of volleyball players. We practice together, coach together, work together, and are good friends, which in turn shows the girls how we expect them to treat one another.”
The eighth-grade St. Joseph Middle School team is experiencing its own success, capturing the IESA Regional title earlier this week. They will compete in Sectional play at St. Joseph Middle School on Monday.
But before the eighth-grade girls compete again, they know their role in motivating the younger players.
“They encourage, cheer, help them with skill building,” Kinney said. “There is a strong friendship that has been built between the seventh-grade players and the eighth-grade players.”
Support is something that bleeds throughout the program. The volleyball parents also support the coaches’ vision year-after-year.
“The parental support Coach Dassow and I have every year is the backbone of our program. Our parents come to us thinking of ways to support the team as a team, and they support us by supporting their player individually and the team as a whole.”
As the Panthers take the court at 7 p.m. at Decatur Lutheran High School for the state tournament tonight, they will feed off the support of teammates, coaches, parents and community.
“Our plan is to fight as a team one game at a time.”
