Monarchs rally past Islanders to win LPS Classic
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BY RON POWELL / Lincoln Journal Star
Fortunately for Papillion-La Vista, there’s no such thing as a skunk rule in volleyball.
Class A second-ranked Grand Island reeled off the first 10 points of its championship match against the top-ranked Monarchs, only to see Papillion-La Vista rebound for a 21-25, 25-18, 25-11 victory in the two-day, 16-team Lincoln Public Schools Classic on Saturday at Lincoln Southeast.
“I thought our girls showed real maturity the way they came back against a very good team,’’ said Papillion-La Vista coach JJ Toczek, whose defending state champion Monarchs (13-0) are the lone undefeated team in Class A. “They didn’t go into a shell or shut down when things didn’t go well. They came back and made it a game in the first set and kept playing from there.”
In the end, the first-team Super-State duo of senior outside hitter Gina Mancuso and senior setter Chelsey Feekin proved too much for the Islanders (12-1). Mancuso, a Nebraska recruit, had eight kills in each of the final two sets to finish with a match-high 22. She terminated from both the front and back row.
Feekin was a threat herself, registering eight kills on dumps and tips while also putting up 34 assists and serving two aces.
“In that first set, we struggled with our ballhandling and passing,’’ Toczek said. “Once we picked those up and got into system, things fell into place. Gina was huge offensively.”
Another factor was Papillion-La Vista’s serving, which produced 10 aces in the match.
“They kind of served us off the court and we ran out of gas in the second and third sets,” Grand Island coach Bill Root said. “This was a good weekend for us. I learned a lot about our team. To go 5-1 in a tournament like this, I’ll take that.”
The Islanders appeared ready to take the rematch of last year’s state tournament final when senior outside hitters Carissa Kinne and Ariel Krolikowski combined for 15 kills in the opening set. Kinne, who had 10 kills in the first set, finished with a team-high 17. Krolikowski smashed five of her nine kills during that same span.
Papillion-La Vista had just 30 minutes to refocus after a hard-fought 30-28, 24-26, 25-17 semifinal victory against No. 4 Omaha Marian, “and mentally, we just weren’t there at the beginning (against Grand Island),’’ Mancuso said. “I feel like we control ourselves. If we stay together and believe in ourselves, we can do anything.’’
The Islanders also had a difficult semifinal, outlasting No. 3 Lincoln Southwest 25-20, 27-29, 26-24. The Silver Hawks (12-3) fought off two match points to win the second set and pulled even at 24 in the third set on a Grand Island hitting error.
It appeared Southwest earned a match point of its own when Stacie Hansen hammered an overpass, but the Hawks were whistled for a net violation instead. Alex Armes then closed out the Islander victory with a point-ending tip.
Southwest reached the semifinals by handing Class B No. 1 Lincoln Pius X its first loss of the season, 25-21, 16-25, 25-18, behind eight kills by Sarah Faubel, four kills and five ace blocks from Ashley Leitner and 23 assists by Stephanie Daffer. Marian (13-2) outlasted the Silver Hawks 15-25, 25-22, 25-11 in the third-place match.
Pius X (13-1) bounced back to beat Elkhorn (25-12, 25-16) and Lincoln East (25-16, 25-14) to finish fifth in the gold bracket. Super-State setter Lauren Cook had 70 assists in the Thunderbolts’ three matches and senior outside hitter Natalie Braun recorded 26 kills.
Class B No. 3 Omaha Gross (10-5) came from behind to beat Class A No. 8 Southeast (7-6) 21-25, 25-22, 25-19 in the eight-team silver bracket championship match at Lincoln Southwest.
Reach Ron Powell at 473-7437 or rpowell@journalstar.com.
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