Crestview’s Abby Emch throws the ball to South Range’s Anna Toy in the Rebels’ Division V regional final victory Thursday. (Morning Journal/Michael Burich)
STREETBORO — It’s not often that Crestview’s volleyball team gets a chance to play against teams from neighboring districts. So when that happens, it gets a little bit more exciting.
The Rebels were happy to see some familiar faces on the South Range during Thursday’s divisional game. In the District V final, the Rebels defeated the Raiders 25-9, 25-15, 25-13, making them even happier for their sixth straight district championship.
“We were excited to finally play a team that was pretty close to us.” Crestview junior Lainie Auer said. “I travel an hour for every league game, so it’s really nice to be able to play with players I know.”
Top-seeded Crestview improved to 25-0. The Rebels head to the district tournament to face last year’s Div. III state champion Mentor Lake Catholic at Burton Berkshire on Thursday at 8 p.m. Second-seeded Lake Catholic ranks first in the division. The V-State coaches poll defeated No. 15 seed Massillion Tuslow 25-15, 25-10, 25-10 in the late regional final Thursday in Streetsboro.
University of Pittsburgh freshman Abby Emch had 18 kills, two blocks and 15 digs, and Laney Auer had 13 kills, nine assists and 10 digs. Sofia Dattilio had a strong game at the net with 5 kills and 3 blocks. Sophia Stewart had 26 assists, two kills and five aces. Natalie Blakeman had two aces and eight digs.
“The last time we played (South Range) was in the 2019 district finals, so it was great to see them again.” Crestview coach Alisha Auer said.
The Rebels practiced against the No. 16 Raiders (14-11). South Range’s defense was challenging enough to force the Rebels into a tough rally, but Crestview’s overall strength was too much for the Raiders.
“(Crestview) is amazing.” South Range coach TJ Irons said. “Those are what we expected. They play so hard that you can’t find a way to put the ball on them. They’re very good at passing the ball, so they’re always involved in the attack. They’re a really, really difficult team to play against.”
For South Range, Anna Toy had five kills and nine digs. Hayden Carey had four assists and four digs. Addison Freedy had five digs and two aces.
Crestview lost to Lake Catholic in the previous divisional game. III Regional Tournament. Last season, Lake Catholic was considered the best team in Ohio in every division and ranked nationally. Despite being heavily overmatched, Crestview was able to take a set from the Cougars in the regional final in Barberton. This set was the only set the Cougars lost in the tournament.
Things are a little different this year. Lake Catholic went 19-4 and looked like it was going to lose at times, but it remains the favorite to win the division. V state title. The Cougars return five players who played in last year’s state championship game: Avery Budries-Rini, Julia Oster, Eva Bandries-Rini, Natalia Burgant and Anna Burgant. Oster is headed to Colgate University, while Eva Vandryse Rini is headed to the NCAA Division. II Walsh and Natalia Burgant are headed to the NCAA Division. II Nova Southeast, Florida.
“Schools like that always have people filling each position.” Alisha Auer said. “They’re very good, but they’ve lost some games this year. Last year I didn’t think they could win and they proved it. Hopefully we can find their weaknesses.”
Crestview returns four players who played key minutes in the district game against Lake Catholic: Auer, Emuch, Lydia Campbell and Natalie Blakeman.
“I’m really looking forward to playing with them.” Rainie Auer said. “I think it’s going to be a fun game, and if we play our game and get excited and give it our all, I think we’ll have a good chance.”
Rainey said she and her mother have watched a lot of videos about Lake Catholic. Ultimately, which team advances to the regional finals will depend on whether new players on both teams step up.
Dattilio, a junior middle hitter for the Rebels, will also be among the players called up. She watched the 2023 district finals from the sideline.
“They’re a really good team, but I think we have a very good chance of beating them this year.” Dattilio said.
match notes
•Fifth-seeded Girard and seventh-seeded Elyria Catholic will play in their first regional game Thursday in the Berkshires at 6 p.m. Crestview won three straight games over Girard at the start of the season.
• Lake Catholic was in the stands from the start, even though the game had started less than two hours later. Tusrow did not appear until much later.
• The gym was about 75% full for the first game, but by the time warm-ups for the second game began, the gym was nearly empty.
