Post by doctorwho on Oct 24, 2007 7:38:33 GMT -6
Playoffs start this weekend. This regional is sick...in that there are 1 - 2 teams that should be in Elite 8 in state that won't make it out of this region ! 4 teams ranked in top 100 in the country
Forget what you think you know
October 24, 2007
By Patrick Mooney Staff Writer
Kassie Kadera politely dismissed the question, the idea, the past.
As Waubonsie Valley's senior setter, Kadera is used to making deflections, so when asked about a loss to Providence Catholic earlier this season, she waved her hand as if to say "forget about it."
Naperville Central's Megan McMahon, left, Nicole Ramey, center, and the rest of the Redhawks are riding a 16-game winning streak into the state playoffs, which begin with preliminary matches today.
Herb Shenkin / Special to The Sun
True, Kadera was ejected from the previous match and unavailable to play against the Celtics in a two-game loss at the Benet Invitational. But moreover this is a time of amnesia and anticipation, especially with the eighth-seeded Warriors (24-9) set to face the 10th-seeded Celtics (24-10) on Saturday in the Waubonsie Regional.
Waubonsie and Benet were rewarded over the long haul, clinching unlikely shares of the Upstate Eight and East Suburban Catholic conference titles in the regular season's final week. But now, when a loss equals instant elimination, the suspense won't be drawn out.
This season the semifinals and finals of the regionals and sectionals will be compressed into one day. And although the tournament has been expanded to four classes, the power base remains in the brutal Naperville North Sectional.
"I can't really make any predictions," said Waubonsie coach Kristen Stuart, adding that eight to 10 teams could make a major run.
The sectional includes four teams listed last week in prepvolleyball.com's national rankings: Naperville Central (16), Naperville North (27), Benet (51) and Downers Grove South (76).
North (31-4) earned the sectional's top seed and features one of the state's most dominant players, 6-foot-2-inch senior outside hitter Colleen Ward.
The Huskies went 1-2 against rival Central, the No. 2 seed and a team that appears to be peaking at just the right time. The Redhawks (31-4) surge into the postseason on a 16-game winning streak.
Central coach Brie Isaacson laughed at the absurdity of it all - her team won 31 games yet wound up finishing third in the DuPage Valley Conference behind Wheaton Warrenville South (30-5) and North.
Still, Isaacson considers that conference schedule great preparation for the playoffs. The Redhawks also have gone 19-1 in tournament play this season, winning the St. Charles East Mizuno Cup and the Glenbard East Autumnfest in October.
"It gives us that little chip on the shoulder, like, 'We can do this if we play our game,'" Central outside hitter Emily McGee said of the tournament experience.
Central has benefited from the return of senior setter Megan McMahon - who missed nearly three weeks after undergoing an appendectomy - and the natural progression of a team playing together.
"What we've really been focusing on is being consistent and that's something especially (important) now, going into postseason, where, you know, you can't miss a game or too many points," McMahon said.
If it gets down to match point, don't look for Benet (32-3) to panic. The Redwings are 6-0 in matches that extend to three games. Last week they registered 34, 28 and 27 points in winning Game 3s against Marist, Neuqua Valley and Providence, respectively.
"At the end of the game, you could tell who was passive and who was not," Benet coach Brad Baker said after the win over Providence. "We were definitely the aggressors late in the game. There's no doubt."
Fourth-seeded Benet will likely face fifth-seeded Neuqua (21-9) again Saturday.
The Naperville North Sectional is filled with storied programs with rich traditions, as well as elite talents who will play Division I volleyball, but now it's all reset.
"Everyone's on a clean slate right now," McMahon said. "We can look on the past as ways to help us improve, and what we've done well and analyze our game, but ... we can't really focus on our past achievements."
Contact Patrick Mooney at pmooney@scn1.com or 630-416-5107.
Forget what you think you know
October 24, 2007
By Patrick Mooney Staff Writer
Kassie Kadera politely dismissed the question, the idea, the past.
As Waubonsie Valley's senior setter, Kadera is used to making deflections, so when asked about a loss to Providence Catholic earlier this season, she waved her hand as if to say "forget about it."
Naperville Central's Megan McMahon, left, Nicole Ramey, center, and the rest of the Redhawks are riding a 16-game winning streak into the state playoffs, which begin with preliminary matches today.
Herb Shenkin / Special to The Sun
True, Kadera was ejected from the previous match and unavailable to play against the Celtics in a two-game loss at the Benet Invitational. But moreover this is a time of amnesia and anticipation, especially with the eighth-seeded Warriors (24-9) set to face the 10th-seeded Celtics (24-10) on Saturday in the Waubonsie Regional.
Waubonsie and Benet were rewarded over the long haul, clinching unlikely shares of the Upstate Eight and East Suburban Catholic conference titles in the regular season's final week. But now, when a loss equals instant elimination, the suspense won't be drawn out.
This season the semifinals and finals of the regionals and sectionals will be compressed into one day. And although the tournament has been expanded to four classes, the power base remains in the brutal Naperville North Sectional.
"I can't really make any predictions," said Waubonsie coach Kristen Stuart, adding that eight to 10 teams could make a major run.
The sectional includes four teams listed last week in prepvolleyball.com's national rankings: Naperville Central (16), Naperville North (27), Benet (51) and Downers Grove South (76).
North (31-4) earned the sectional's top seed and features one of the state's most dominant players, 6-foot-2-inch senior outside hitter Colleen Ward.
The Huskies went 1-2 against rival Central, the No. 2 seed and a team that appears to be peaking at just the right time. The Redhawks (31-4) surge into the postseason on a 16-game winning streak.
Central coach Brie Isaacson laughed at the absurdity of it all - her team won 31 games yet wound up finishing third in the DuPage Valley Conference behind Wheaton Warrenville South (30-5) and North.
Still, Isaacson considers that conference schedule great preparation for the playoffs. The Redhawks also have gone 19-1 in tournament play this season, winning the St. Charles East Mizuno Cup and the Glenbard East Autumnfest in October.
"It gives us that little chip on the shoulder, like, 'We can do this if we play our game,'" Central outside hitter Emily McGee said of the tournament experience.
Central has benefited from the return of senior setter Megan McMahon - who missed nearly three weeks after undergoing an appendectomy - and the natural progression of a team playing together.
"What we've really been focusing on is being consistent and that's something especially (important) now, going into postseason, where, you know, you can't miss a game or too many points," McMahon said.
If it gets down to match point, don't look for Benet (32-3) to panic. The Redwings are 6-0 in matches that extend to three games. Last week they registered 34, 28 and 27 points in winning Game 3s against Marist, Neuqua Valley and Providence, respectively.
"At the end of the game, you could tell who was passive and who was not," Benet coach Brad Baker said after the win over Providence. "We were definitely the aggressors late in the game. There's no doubt."
Fourth-seeded Benet will likely face fifth-seeded Neuqua (21-9) again Saturday.
The Naperville North Sectional is filled with storied programs with rich traditions, as well as elite talents who will play Division I volleyball, but now it's all reset.
"Everyone's on a clean slate right now," McMahon said. "We can look on the past as ways to help us improve, and what we've done well and analyze our game, but ... we can't really focus on our past achievements."
Contact Patrick Mooney at pmooney@scn1.com or 630-416-5107.