Dublin Jerome, Olentangy Liberty, DeSales advance to boys volleyball state tournament
The difference between a historic win for his program and a third loss in six weeks to one of its biggest rivals was small to Dublin Jerome boys volleyball coach Phil Cagnoli.
All the Celtics cared about after a 25-19, 25-23, 19-25, 13-25, 19-17 win over Thomas Worthington in a Division I East Region final May 28 at Westerville Central was that they will play another day, and that their next match will be the program’s first in a state tournament.
“We’ve been trying to break through this hurdle and this was an exciting one. Good for the sport, bad for my heart,” Cagnoli said. “We train for moments like this. We want to be the aggressive team. We want to actively go out and try to win matches as opposed to trying not to lose. That’s served us well. ...
“We knew we had this in us. We’re more confident and we have more experience than when we played them earlier. These guys played like veterans.”
Jerome improved to 17-9 and will face Cincinnati Elder in a state quarterfinal June 4 at Pickerington Central.
The sixth-seeded Celtics, who were appearing in their fifth consecutive regional final, rarely led the second-seeded Cardinals in the third and fourth games. The fifth featured 14 ties before Jerome scored the last two points.
“We just had to stay calm. We were capable. We continued to trust each other,” said outside hitter Connor Kemp, who is a part of a large junior class for Jerome that also includes hitters Aidan Eberheart, Henry Guerrera and Kai Van Bourgondien and libero Cam Eckelberry. “We played a lot better today. We had a lot of trust in each other in that last game. All the pieces fit. As a team, we thrived.”
Thomas won both regular-season meetings in OCC-Cardinal Division play: 25-20, 15-25, 17-25, 25-22, 15-3 on April 14 and 25-20, 26-24, 26-24 on May 5.
The Cardinals, who were seeking their first regional championship since 1995 and first state title since 1990, finished 20-7. They were led throughout the season by setter Joe Kolwicz and middle hitter Bo O’Leary.
“We had trouble blocking the outsides in the first two (games), but we were much better after that, then the fifth came down to serving,” Thomas coach Brian Lawless said. “We put three straight serves into the net to give them three straight match points and you can’t win when you spot them points like that.”
—Dave Purpura
Olentangy Liberty 3, Mount Vernon 1
It took 16 seasons for Liberty to reach the state tournament for the first time. The Patriots did not have to wait as long for their second trip after a 25-27, 25-20, 25-8, 25-20 win over Mount Vernon in a Division I East Region final clinched a berth for the second consecutive season.
“I knew coming in, we had a lot of potential,” Liberty senior Noah Koknat said. “We just really wanted to win. But we still have a (long way) to go with states next weekend.”
Liberty, which improved to 22-3, faces Cincinnati Moeller in a state quarterfinal June 4 at Pickerington Central.
Size was a strength for top-seeded Liberty, which used 25 blocks to throw off the Yellow Jackets. Jake Koch and Colby Whiteside had six blocks each and David Jenkins added five.
“After (the first set), I think we did a great job of limiting their runs,” Liberty coach David Hale said. “We have a size advantage on them. (Mount Vernon’s Parker Gantt) could jump over most people ... but we were able to get some really good blocks on him and that was huge. I think (Koch, Whiteside and Jenkins) were really instrumental in controlling the net.”
Typical of their season, the Patriots had a balanced effort. Koknat had 15 kills, Jenkins had 12 digs, Connor Severson had 25 assists, 10 digs and three aces, Jack Sullenberger had 18 digs and three aces and Wes Davis had 13 assists.
“The biggest thing is that everyone came together and we did this as a team,” Koknat said. “There were no individual players. After that, it was getting hyped up for each other.”
Mount Vernon, seeded third, enjoyed a bounce-back year, finishing 17-5 after going 1-20 last season. The Yellow Jackets feature eight freshmen and sophomores and just two seniors on their roster.
One of those sophomores, Gantt, had 19 kills and 15 digs. Cooper Carpenter had 28 assists, Dash Lepley had 20 digs and Weston Porter added nine kills and 12 digs.
“There’s still some youth,” Mount Vernon coach Chad Sivewright said. “Being on a stage like that, it might have been tough for them to manage it in that second set. Having been here now – we didn’t get that experience last year – playing in front of this many people, it was pretty big for them. It’s a good experience because next year, they’ll know what it feels like.”
—Michael Rich
DeSales 3, St. Charles 1
Health made a difference for the top-seeded Stallions, who were not at full strength during two regular-season losses to the second-seeded Cardinals but largely controlled their Division II East Region final throughout, winning 25-15, 25-20, 21-25, 25-15.
Camren White had 17 kills, Cameron Hoying had 29 assists and four kills and Luke Gabrielli had six assists for DeSales, which won its first regional championship since 2016.
“Our top end is as good or better than any team in the state in my opinion. It’s maintaining that and getting into that that is the key,” Stallions coach Andy Feltz said. “We can play bad or we can play well. We were down (18-13) in the second game here and went on an 11-2 run. It’s about capturing that moment when we’re peaking. ...
“I did some reminiscing about our earlier state teams, thinking of how much fun it will be to have them experience that. It’s something to remember forever.”
DeSales improved to 20-4 and will play Hamilton Badin in a state semifinal June 4 at Pickerington Central.
The Stallions lost to St. Charles 25-22, 23-25, 25-16, 25-16 on April 8 and 25-20, 25-18, 25-22 13 days later. Hoying, the team’s primary setter, was injured during the first match and cleared to play two days before the second.
“Being healthy is key, but I think the magnitude of the match really inspired us,” Hoying said. “We limited our errors and our serving was really big.”
St. Charles, which was seeking its first regional championship since 2018, finished 19-8.
“They served really well and blocked really well. They played a great match,” Cardinals coach Ned Gruber said. “We had a tough time being in system on serve receives ... and they put a lot of pressure on us.”
—Dave Purpura
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This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Volleyball: Jerome, Liberty, DeSales advance to state tourney
