Cincinnati Moeller rallies to stun Olentangy Liberty in OHSAA boys volleyball state final
SPRINGFIELD — On the verge of winning its first state championship, the Olentangy Liberty boys volleyball team saw Cincinnati Moeller turn the tables in the Division I title match Sunday at Wittenberg.
Down two sets to none, the Crusaders rallied to win their third consecutive state title and 11th overall, defeating the Patriots 19-25, 16-25, 25-23, 25-23, 15-13.
Moeller (23-4) was playing in its fifth consecutive state championship match, while the Patriots (24-5) were in their third state tournament in a row but their first final. It also was the first state tournament run by the OHSAA.
“That was a great match,” Liberty coach David Hale said. “Moeller has the experience of being here before. This is our first time, but we were right there, right where we wanted to be. I thought we came out strong and then they battled back, and we were still right there and had a chance to win it a couple of times, and it just didn’t go our way.”
The teams also met April 1, with Liberty winning 16-25, 25-22, 25-22, 25-22.
On Sunday, Liberty led the fourth set 16-8 and 20-13 before Moeller rallied to force the decisive 15-point fifth set.
Trailing 3-0 and 4-1, Liberty rallied to tie the set at 7. It was tied at 13 before Moeller scored the final two points.
Caden Whiteside, a junior outside hitter, led Liberty with 28 kills and eight digs. Connor Severson, a junior setter, had 54 assists and eight digs.
“It was a great (match),” Whiteside said. “The adrenaline, it was point to point in the fifth set. I know I left it all out there. I have nothing to be upset about.”
Also for Liberty, junior outside hitter/defensive specialist Ryan Severson had 16 kills and 14 digs, and junior middle hitter Jack Torson had 10 kills.
Liberty earned the respect of Crusaders coach Lee Meyer, a 2007 Moeller graduate and former player in the program.
“What coach Hale does with Liberty is remarkable,” Meyer said. “He’s a great coach. He gets a lot of out of his athletes, and we expected that. I give him and his team a bunch of credit. They’re young, they’re scrappy. They play great defense. They have good ball control. They run a really nice diverse offense.”
Will Patterson, a 6-foot-10 middle blocker for Moeller, had 21 kills and four blocks. Setter Ben Marcum had 52 assists and nine digs.
“It’s been a roller coaster all season,” Meyer said. “We had a really tough schedule, some tough injuries. Somehow with our coaching philosophy, it all starts to come together as we get in the state tournament. It’s not easy to do what we did today. Down 2-0, down 16-8 in the fourth set, in those tough moments, it comes down to our core philosophy in our varsity program, and that’s trust.”
With several key players expected to return, Liberty hopes to make a return trip to state next season.
“We lose two seniors (in Jack Sullenberger and Wes Davis) and it’s going to be tough to replace them,” Hale said. “They did a tremendous job for us this year. ... We’re going to miss them, but hopefully we have some kids who got a good taste of this and they’ll be hungry for next year."
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Olentangy Liberty falls in OHSAA boys volleyball state final
