Ohiohsvb.com News About Ohio High School Volleyball |
|
|
Centerville serves notice they are still the champs
Centerville served notice last weekend that they are once again a team to be reckoned with by anyone with State Championship aspirations. The Elks won the Cardinal Classic, successfully defending the title they won last year. The tournament was hosted by St. Charles and held at Pickerington High School.
Centerville had graduated three starters from last year’s state title team, including State Player of the Year Kevin Boehmer. This gave some opponents a glimmer of hope that the Elks might have lost some of their edge. But after knocking off Cincinnati St. Xavier and Dublin Scioto, two of this year’s preseason favorites to make a run for the state crown, Centerville seems fully prepared to defend their title.
The tournament began Friday with scrimmage matches to determine eight qualifiers for the right to play for the title in the Gold Bracket.
Centerville, St. Xavier and Dublin Scioto went 6-0, each winning their three scrimmages two games to none. Roger Bacon went 5-1, splitting a match with Lakota East. The other four qualifiers, Gahanna, St. Charles, Kilbourne and Pickerington had 4-2 records.
The remaining ten teams were assigned to the Silver and Bronze brackets based on their records.
The Gold Bracket first round went mostly by the book with St. Xavier, Centerville and Dublin Scioto winning their matches fairly easily. In the one match in doubt, Roger Bacon nipped Gahanna 15-11, 11-15, 16-14 in a thriller.
The Spartans took a 13-4 lead in game three led by David Ebbeler and DJ Wyrick. But Gahanna ran off ten straight points, cutting the lead to 13-12, and after an intense volley, tying and then taking the lead. Gahanna’s spurt was fueled by the blocking of senior Neil Malernee. However, Roger Bacon was not to be denied, as they snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. Henry Mitchell had some key spikes to keep the Spartans alive.
The semifinal match between St. Xavier and Centerville could have been a State semifinal, given the caliber and intensity of play. The match featured great setting, hitting and blocking. The players seemed tense as both teams were plagued by service errors, and there were several net calls and spikes out of bounds. With neither team able to sustain much momentum, the outcome was in doubt all the way.
St. X jumped out to a 4-1 lead in game one, only to have the Elks tie it at 5. The Bombers went up again 8-5, only to see another tie at 9. Centerville led briefly 11-10, the Bombers went up 13-11, and Centerville tied it at 13. St. Xavier scored the winning points on kills by Nick Tenhundfeld and Jason Motz.
In game 2 Centerville got a little momentum going as they charged out to a 3-0 lead, but St. X came right back to tie at 3. There were more ties at 5, 6, 7, 8 and 11. The Elks then scored a point to go up 12-11. After four service breaks, Centerville scored three quick points for the game win on two St. X errors and a block by Ben Devine.
In game 3, Centerville charged to leads of 4-0 and 10-5. However, St. X responded with six points in a row to go in front 11-10, and then increased their lead to 13-11.
But Centerville took over from there. Server Brett Versen smashed a kill from backcourt that blasted out of bounds off a St. X blocker. This was followed by a tip down the line by Peter Merrell. Versen popped a serve into a hole just over the net for an ace. And after two sideouts, Merrell got the winning kill after a rare set by Ben Devine.
Either team could have won this match. Both teams have solid setters. Reed Chilton leads the Elks’ offense and Colin Johnson handles the setting for St. X. Both teams have balanced hitting attacks.
Fortunately for fans, these teams will meet again. On April 7 St. X travels to Centerville for a match, and on April 26 the Bombers return for Centerville’s Elite Tournament. With any luck, there will be yet another meeting at Baldwin-Wallace on May 31, either in the State semifinal or final.
The title match between Centerville and Dublin Scioto started off just as exciting. With Scioto digging everything in sight and Kevin Douce and Joey Rossetter taking turns at the net with aerial spiking, the Irish rolled to a 10-5 lead. However, Centerville rallied from an 8-11 deficit with five straight points. After the Irish tied it at 13, Centerville scored the winning points on a Versen block of a tip by Rossetter, and Ben Devine’s block of an overpass.
The excitement continued briefly in game two with Scioto taking a 2-1 lead. But the Irish then came unraveled, making several errors, while Centerville was playing at their best. The match was over in a matter of minutes as the game turned into a 15-3 rout. Peter Merrell served the final seven points in a row.
For anyone still thinking the Elks might have lost a little of their edge, Reed Chilton looked better than ever as setter, with excellent ball distribution. Against Dublin he scored two points in a row on dump sets, including a slam dump that looked like a cross between a dump and a spike.
And Brett Versen has taken over where Kevin Boehmer left off. With a great vertical to go with his 6’5” frame, Versen terminated a lot of volleys. Fans who sit behind the back court are advised to pay close attention to Versen when the Elks are at the opposite end.
In other action, Roger Bacon gave St. Xavier a brief scare in the third place match, winning game one 16-14. However, the Spartans only scored nine points in the next two games. Kevin Overmann scored the final two points for St. X on serves that dropped just over the net for aces.
Pickerington surprised some folks by taking fifth in the tournament. First they beat Worthington Kilbourne in a consolation semifinal 8-15, 15-11, 19-17. The Tigers won despite having only one senior, Adam Boyd, available for the match.
After the pesky Tigers had tied the match in game two, Kilbourne seemed to have things in control as they charged to an 8-0 lead in the finale. But Pickerington roared back to tie with eight unanswered points. The teams were still tied at 12 when Kilbourne scored twice to reach match point. However, this contest still had over fifteen tense and exciting minutes remaining. With the teams trading sideouts, Pickerington went up 15-14, Kilbourne 16-15 and Pickerington again at 17-16. After five sideouts at 17-all, the Tigers finally put it away.
Pickerington beat Gahanna Lincoln in the fifth place match. Again the Tigers lost the first game and came back for the victory. Besides Boyd, the Tigers were led by junior setter Brandon McDonough and sophomore hitter Eric Cardenas.
Fairborn won the Silver Bracket beating Delaware out on points even though Delaware won their match with Fairborn. Watterson went 3-0 to win the Bronze Bracket. Lakota East, Delaware and Mt. Vernon were involved in some great matches. St. Charles Cardinal Classic - 2003 Results Saturday’s Scores
Gold Bracket
First Round St. Xavier def. St. Charles 15-5, 15-9 Centerville def. Pickerington 15-4, 15-7 Dublin Scioto def. Worthington Kilbourne 15-9, 15-6 Roger Bacon def. Gahanna 15-11, 11-15, 16-14
Second Round Centerville def. St. Xavier 13-15, 15-11, 15-13 Scioto def. Roger Bacon 15-9, 15-8 Gahanna def. St. Charles 15-11, 15-10 Pickerington def. Kilbourne 8-15, 15-11, 19-17
Seventh Place Kilbourne def. St. Charles 15-12, 15-6 Fifth Place Pickerington def. Gahanna 12-15, 15-5, 15-10 Third Place St. Xavier def. Roger Bacon 14-16, 15-5, 15-4 First Place Centerville def. Scioto 15-13, 15-3
Silver Bracket Delaware def. Lakota East 12-15, 16-14, 15-13 Fairborn def. Mt. Vernon 15-12, 16-14 Sycamore def. Delaware 15-9, 11-15, 15-6 Fairborn def. Lakota East 8-15, 15-8, 15-12 Mt. Vernon def. Sycamore 15-9, 14-16, 15-12 Delaware def. Fairborn 15-13, 15-10 Lakota East def. Mt. Vernon 15-5, 14-16, 15-11
Bronze Bracket Westerville South def. Toledo Central Catholic 15-0, 15-2 Olentangy def. Westerville North 17-15, 15-13 Watterson def. Westerville South 15-8, 15-5 Olentangy def. Toledo Central Catholic 15-5, 15-4 Watterson def. Westerville North 15-2, 15-5 Westerville South def. Olentangy 15-4, 17-15 Westerville North def. Toledo Central Catholic 15-10, 17-15 Watterson def. Sycamore 15-13, 15-11
Silver Bracket Results: 1. Fairborn 2-1 (Points) 2. Delaware 2-1 3. Lakota East 1-2 4. Mt. Vernon 1-2 5. Sycamore 1-2
Bronze Bracket Results: 1. Watterson 3-0 2. Westerville South 2-1 3. Olentangy 2-1 4. Westerville North 1-2 5. Toledo Central Catholic 0-3
Friday's Scrimmage Scores
Pool A
Westerville North 0-2 Gahanna 2-0 (15-3, 15-13)
St. Xavier 2-0 (18-16, 15-4) Fairborn 0-2
St. Xavier 2-0 (15-7, 15-11) Gahanna 0-2
Westerville North 0-2 Fairborn 2-0 (15-6, 15-4)
Gahanna 2-0 (15-13, 15-9) Fairborn 0-2
Westerville North 0-2 St. Xavier 2-0 (15-7, 15-8)
St. Xavier 6-0 Gahanna 4-2 Fairborn 2-4 Westerville North 0-6
Pool B
Olentangy 0-2 Kilbourne 2-0 (15-6, 15-5)
Mt. Vernon 0-2 Centerville 2-0 (15-8, 15-8
Centerville 2-0 (15-10, 15-5) Olentangy 0-2
Kilbourne 2-0 (15-6, 15-5) Mt. Vernon 0-2
Mt. Vernon 2-0 (15-9, 15-9) Olentangy 0-2
Kilbourne 0-2 Centerville 2-0 (15-10, 15-8)
Centerville 6-0 Kilbourne 4-2 Mt. Vernon 2-4 Olentangy 6-0
Pool C
Pickerington 1-1 (15-9) Westerville South 1-1 (15-12)
Dublin Scioto 2-0 (15-10, 15-9) Delaware 0-2
Sycamore 0-2 Pickerington 2-0 (15-10, 15-11)
Delaware 2-0 (15-10, 15-13) Westerville South 0-2
Dublin Scioto 2-0 (15-12, 15-13) Sycamore 0-2
Pickerington 1-1 Delaware 1-1
Westerville South 0-2 Dublin Scioto 2-0 (15-4, 15-2)
Sycamore 2-0 (15-7, 15-11) Toledo Central Catholic 0-2
DublinScioto 6-0 Pickerington 4-2 Delaware 3-3 Sycamore 2-4 Westerville South 1-5
Pool D
Watterson 1-1 (15-12) St. Charles 1-1 (16-14)
Lakota East 1-1 (15-13) Roger Bacon 1-1 (16-14)
Toledo Central Catholic 0-2 St. Charles 2-0 (15-6, 15-7)
Watterson 1-1 (15-13) Lakota East 1-1 (15-11)
Toledo Central Catholic 0-2 Roger Bacon 2-0 (15-3, 15-4)
St. Charles 1-1 (15-10) Lakota East 1-1 (15-13)
Watterson 0-2 Roger Bacon 2-0 (15-9, 15-9)
Roger Bacon 5-1 St. Charles 4-2 Lakota East 3-3 Watterson 2-4 Toledo Central Catholic 0-6
|
|
Copyright © 2002-2007 [ohiohsvb.com]. All rights reserved. |