HS volleyball: NorthWood falls to No. 1 Bellmont in semistate
The NorthWood volleyball team had another banner season this fall.
The No. 5 Panthers unfortunately had to play postseason nemesis Bellmont again in the semistate this year.
The top-ranked Braves proved to be too much for the Red Slam once again in downing No. 5 NorthWood 3-0 in the Class 3A North Semistate at Huntington North High School.
Preview: NorthWood, LaPorte facing formidable foes in IHSAA volleyball semistate
Bellmont, which has now sidelined NorthWood in the postseason the last five years, advances to play Providence (30-5) in the Class 3A state title match at Ball State University in Muncie next Saturday at 4:30 p.m. Providence defeated Tri-West Hendricks 3-1 in the South Semistate Saturday.
NorthWood, which also lost 3-0 to Bellmont in the semistate a year ago, finishes at 32-5. Bellmont, which has won its last 16 matches, improved to 34-2 and claimed the program's sixth semistate championship. The Panthers were trying to win their first-ever semistate crown.
"I'm just sad," said NorthWood coach Hilary Laidig by phone Saturday evening as she was en route back to Nappanee with her team following the loss. "I'm sad that it's over and that there will be no practice on Monday. This group of seven seniors this year was a really special group."
"Our seniors left an amazing legacy with their selflessness. They led with their hearts and I think they really showed our underclassmen how to do that. I took a long moment after the match to tell them what type of impact they had on this season and on our program."
Bellmont, which beat NorthWood 3-1 in September, won the first set handily 25-12. The Panthers trailed 20-12 in the second set before staging a furious comeback attempt. NorthWood scored 10 straight points to take the lead and just missed on a service ace for set point. The Braves recovered to win the set 26-24 and then took the final set 25-15 to close out the match.
"We had a great warmup, but them we came out a little slow to start and that hurt us," noted Laidig. "Then in that second set it was really tight. We made a fantastic run and were fighting and I could see in our players eyes that belief and excitement. They just got us.
"You can't predict what would have happened, but I would have liked our chances if we could have taken that second set to make it 1-1."
Bellmont, whose only losses were to Class 4A No. 1 Hamilton Southeastern and Angola, owns a 96-13 advantage in sets on the season.
Senior Karis Bennett had a team-high five kills for the Panthers. Bennett also had 16 digs.
Juniors Claire Payne and Sophia Barber each had four kills for NorthWood. Payne led her team with four blocks and Barber had nine digs. Senior Jessie Price had 22 digs and junior Tatum Evers 10. Junior Anna Roeder had seven assists and senior Emery Porter six.
Laidig was also quick to praise the play of perennial power Bellmont.
"They are really good," said Laidig of the Braves, who were state runner up a year ago. "They have won 19 sectionals in a row for a reason. They played amazing today. I was just really impressed that they did not let a ball hit the floor. That's just their mentality."
Laidig, completing her 15th season, loses seven seniors. She does have a great nucleus returning though, led by Payne and Barber.
"We definitely have some pieces coming back next season," concluded Laidig. "But it's just really tough seeing this senior class leave."
LaPorte Slicers season ends
LaPorte volleyball coach TR Harlan called Hamilton Southeastern the best high school team he'd seen after watching tape of them earlier this past week.
The No. 1 Royals definitely lived up to their lofty billing Saturday evening.
Top ranked Hamilton Southeastern topped the No. 12 Slicers 3-0 in the Class 4A North Semistate match at Frankfort High School.
The defending state champion Royals improved to 32-0 and advance to play Castle (34-3) next Saturday for the Class 4A state title at Ball State University in Muncie at 7 p.m. Castle topped Roncalli 3-1 in the South Semistate Saturday.
The Royals, who have now won 92 of 96 sets played this season, beat the Slicers 25-16, 25-14, 25-13. It was the third semistate title for the Royals.
LaPorte, which started its season 17-0, finishes at 32-5. The Slicers, who had won their previous 10 matches prior to Saturday, say goodbye to six seniors. That stellar class includes top hitters Emalee Maesch and Ava Holtz, along with standout setter Bella Meier and libero Isabel Freese.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: No. 1 Bellmont sidelined NorthWood in IHSAA semistate volleyball play
