Turning the tide
WEXFORD — With his Freeport girls volleyball team trailing Mars 23-8 in the second game, coach Tom Phillips called a timeout.
It was less about strategy and more about survival.
"I told them, 'Hey, I'm not saying this game is over,'" Phillips said. "'But we need to build momentum for the next game.'"
His words weren't immediately heeded. The Yellowjackets lost both the second and third games and found themselves in an unfamiliar situation: facing a 2-1 deficit and little margin for error.
Freeport, though, settled down and won the next two games to oust the feisty Planets in a five-game marathon 25-22, 8-25, 20-25, 25-20, 15-5.
The win sends the Yellowjackets to the WPIAL Class AA semifinals Thursday against Hopewell at a site and time to be determined.
The loss sends Mars home again after the WPIAL quarterfinals.
"We were a little nervous," Phillips said. "I really felt if we could get it to Game 5 we could find that momentum."
Freeport (17-0) did just that with defense in the fourth game, flustering Mars' powerful hitters with dig after dig.
In the fifth game, hitters Ashley Sample and Rachel Grubbs took over to rout the Planets.
"What they did so well, and what they have been doing well all year, is they are able to frustrate teams," said Mars coach Dan Mountain. "You can make some great plays, and expect to win points, but it just doesn't beat them."
Mars (14-4) dominated the second and third games by forcing Freeport into uncharacteristic mistakes.
The Planets scored five straight points to take a 15-5 lead in the second game and then finished off the Yellowjackets by winning the final eight points.
It left Freeport shellshocked.
"After that second (game) when they really put a beating on us, our coach challenged us," said Freeport senior Anna Christy. "He just flat out said, 'Seniors, I expected more out of you.'"
Christy took those words to heart.Freeport struggled at the start of the third game and trailed 15-8 at one point. But the Yellowjackets made a push at the end of the game that helped Christy and her teammates calm down.Christy had to calm Sample, who was whipped into a frenzy."Ashley is an amazing player and she is only a sophomore," Christy said. "But we told her, 'You need to relax. Put that ball down like you usually do. Just pretend like it is a regular game.' We tell her that, but it's probably hard to get that into her mind."Christy's words must have worked. Sample had five of her 14 kills in the final game.Grubbs also had a strong final game with four kills and a slew of big blocks and digs.The loss dampened a stellar match by several Mars players.Sophomore Jaden Zimmer had 14 kills, junior Maura Randolph had 11 kills and sophomore Abby Matusik had 10 kills.Brooke Finney, one of only two seniors on the Planets' roster along with Heather Hodges, had eight kills."My two seniors, they did a great job leading this team," Mountain said. "They kept their composure. Those juniors and those 10th-graders who were in there made a lot of progress because of them. We just wanted to keep this going."
