Dublin Scioto, Olentangy Orange to face off for OHSAA Division I volleyball regional title
Central Ohio could have as many as three girls volleyball teams reach the state tournament. Dublin Scioto and Olentangy Orange will meet Saturday for a state berth in Division I, while Hartley will face Marietta in Division II and Shekinah Christian will take on Sarahsville Shenandoah in Division IV. Here's a recap of the action from Thursday's regional semifinals.
Dublin Scioto 3, Watterson 0
Scioto moved a win closer to its first regional championship, beating Watterson 25-14, 25-16, 25-22 at Hilliard Darby. The Irish (27-0) will play Orange for the Division I regional title at 2 p.m. Saturday at Darby. Scioto swept Watterson (17-10) this season, having also beaten the Eagles 25-15, 22-25, 23-25, 25-12, 15-9 on Oct. 2 at home. The wins helped the Irish avenge a 26-24, 25-20, 25-14 loss to Watterson in a district final last season. “We’ve kept our focus on this year and what this team is doing and what this team was capable of,” said Scioto coach Jackie Wilson, whose team is playing in its fourth regional. “I respect the heck out of Watterson’s program. They’re always a good defensive team. They have some great, talented hitters. When you’re up against a program like that with all its history, of course it feels good. You know you have to play your best to beat a team like that.”
Scioto again was led by senior middle hitter Alec Rothe, a Florida commit who was a force at the net. Senior middle blocker Amariah White, junior outside hitter Kayden Winbush and junior setter Maddie Zechman also played key roles. “In previous years, it (felt like) we were just happy to be here, but we’re ready to go to state,” Rothe said. “That is our goal this year. We just keep pushing every day. We keep fighting every day to get one more practice, one more game together, because we love each other. We play with love. We play because we enjoy what we’re doing.”
Watterson coach Stephanie Grieshop was pleased with her team’s effort during the match and for the season. The Eagles were led by outside hitters Layla Hoying and Jessie Musselman and middle blocker Chloe Moreland. “We had opportunities to score and we just didn’t capitalize on them,” Grieshop said. “I thought we did a good job of getting them out of system, but we couldn’t convert those points.”
Olentangy Orange 3, Pickerington Central 1
Seeking its first regional title, Orange (24-3) beat Central 25-13, 25-15, 21-25, 25-17 at Darby. The Pioneers last advanced to the regional final in 2020, losing to eventual state runner-up Olentangy Liberty 25-23, 25-17, 25-21. “This is our fifth time going to a regional final,” Orange coach Katie Duy said. “For this group and all the (alumni) who have come before them, it’s been a goal of ours and what we’ve been working towards. They work extremely hard and they’re up for the challenge.”
Lily Barron led Orange with 15 kills, 22 digs, four aces and two blocks, and Izzy Scholvin had 23 assists. “This is what I love about this group,” Duy said. “It’s an ultimate team. We have four, five players at 100-plus kills. We’re very balanced and we have a very unselfish group.”
Central coach Jeannie Krueger was pleased with how her team battled, especially winning the third set when faced with elimination. “My girls don’t give up,” said Krueger, whose team saw its past two seasons end with district final losses. “They will fight to the end and that’s what they did. ... They’ve believed in the coaching staff and believed in each other.”
Central (22-4) was led by senior outside hitter Myriah Massey, a Florida State commit in beach volleyball. She had 23 kills, 14 digs, one ace and one block. "Myriah is a huge loss,” Krueger said. “She’s left her mark on this program. She’s broken a ton of her own records just this year.”
Hartley 3, Dover 0
Hartley (21-6) advanced to a Division II regional final by beating Dover 25-20, 25-20, 25-12 at Heath. The Hawks will play Marietta for the title at 2 p.m. Saturday at Heath. “This team can accomplish anything as long as we play as a team and we don’t get too individualized and start worrying about ourselves as an individual,” coach Mike Rahe said. “Someone is always stepping up and making a play.” Against Dover, Florida International commit Kelly Musick had 13 assists and 11 kills, Mallory Matheny had 21 assists and five aces, Karah O’Malley had 15 digs, Molly Hannah had 11 digs and five aces and Kendall Kirkbride had seven kills.
Hartley, which has won four consecutive district titles and nine in 11 years, is seeking its first state title since 2011 when Rahe was an assistant. The Hawks were state runners-up in 2018, 2016 and 2014. “It’s just consistency in the program, making sure that our freshmen and (junior varsity) teams are doing the same thing as the varsity team is,” Rahe said.
Rahe anticipated his team would have potential. Months ago, he was invited to a wedding scheduled for Saturday. He informed the couple his team likely would be playing in the regional final. “At the beginning of the year, you look at what you lost the year before and that was a lot,” he said. “I’m not really surprised, but you never know how a team comes together.”
Shekinah Christian 3, Waterford 0
Shekinah Christian earned a berth in a Division IV regional final by beating Waterford 25-10, 25-23, 27-25 at Pickerington North. The Flames (23-3) will play Shenandoah for the title at 4 p.m. Saturday at North. “We just have to keep doing what we have been doing, sticking together as a team, encouraging each other and play our best game,” coach Colleen Showalter said.
Against Waterford, Hailey Campagna had 25 digs and 23 kills, Eleyna Beachy had 34 assists, Nava Showalter had nine kills, nine digs and five aces and Taylor Helmuth added 11 digs. “Anything can happen (in the) postseason, you never know,” coach Showalter said. “Looking at film on Waterford, I thought we could beat them in three possibly, but you just never know. I was super pleased to win in three.”
In Division III, Newark Catholic lost 25-21, 25-19, 18-25, 25-19 to Cincinnati McNicholas at Kettering Fairmont and Marion Pleasant fell 25-12, 25-18, 25-17 to St. Henry at Findlay Liberty-Benton.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Scioto, Orange to meet for Division I volleyball regional title
