DeSales advances to OHSAA Division II state final in boys volleyball
SPRINGFIELD — The DeSales boys volleyball team will try to give coach Andy Feltz a going-away present when he guides the Stallions in the Division II state title match Sunday at Wittenberg.
The Stallions (19-4) will play Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary (17-5) at 3 p.m., following Olentangy Liberty against Cincinnati Moeller in the Division I final at noon.
Feltz is stepping down after 15 seasons. He also previously led the DeSales girls program for four years.
“They’re nice kids,” Feltz said. “This is my last year as the head coach. I’m going to retire (after) 19 seasons. I’m ready, so they want to send me out with a win. That’s great, but I want to do it for them, too.”
The Stallions beat Independence, a suburban Cleveland school, 25-17, 25-14, 25-6 in a semifinal Saturday night.
Setter Cameron Hoying led DeSales, finishing with 34 assists while doing his best to equally distribute his passes among his teammates.
Outside hitter Evan Althouse had a team-high 14 kills.
“It’s a lot of fun to play with Cameron,” Althouse said. “Playing with him for the past few years in club, it’s fun to play as seniors.”
Outside hitter Camren White and middle blocker Zane Patterson added seven kills apiece. Libero Aaron Firmalan and White each had eight digs.
Independence reached state as a first-year program.
DeSales and St. Vincent-St. Mary met April 1, with the Stallions winning 25-23, 25-16, 25-21, but Feltz said the Fighting Irish have improved.
“They run a few different things,” Feltz said “They’ve diversified their offense a little bit from the first time we played them.”
He said the key players for St. Vincent-St. Mary are outside hitter Riles Guseman and opposite hitter Ethan Wyszyski.
“We have our work cut out for us,” Feltz said.
DeSales reached the state championship match in 2015, losing to Kettering Alter in five sets.
Last season, DeSales lost in a state semifinal and St. Vincent-St. Mary lost in a quarterfinal.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: DeSales advances to Division II state final in boys volleyball
